Flights and Bites
by slaxl
Summary: Derek takes Stiles and Scott on a trip to South America, supposedly to escape the Argents.  But Derek has his own motives for going...
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I own nothing about Teen Wolf, though if I did, there'd sure as hell be a lot more Stiles...**

**Author's note: This fic contains spoilers from the show's season 1 finale, so if you haven't seen it you've been warned.**

Airports were always too loud and crowded in Stiles' opinion. Especially when you've been waiting for a plane that's been delayed twice and on top of that you have to deal with a moody werewolf who keeps threatening the already overworked flight attendants. Stiles just rolled his eyes as Derek growled impatience for the upteenth time. He stared at his phone, trying to ignore the sounds of busy people roaming around him, and dragged his thumb against the screen launching the red cardinal into a pile of bricks. Whatever anyone said, Angry Birds had been an absolute stroke of genuis to the inventor. Stiles stifled a grunt as the cardinal fell feebly to the ground, not even having broken through the brick barrier protecting those damn hogs.

"How much longer?" He asked, not bothering to look up. Derek sat next to him, his leather jacket rubbing against Stiles' shirt every now and then. He felt the wolf shrug, and went back to his game. "We've been here almost three hou-"

"I know how long it's been, Stiles. I've already asked when we'll be taking off, but they can't give me a definite answer." Derek huffed. His impatience was starting to boil over, and Stiles couldn't blame him. They'd said goodbye to Scott a few hours back. His plane had been on time, and Stiles was starting to wish he'd opted for going with Scott rather than waiting with Derek. But ever since he and Scott had almost been killed the previous week, Derek hadn't let Stiles out of his sight. Literally. He'd slept in Stiles' room, and only after much begging and compromising on Stiles' part. If it had been up to Derek he would've spent the entire week without sleep, ever vigilant beside Stiles. And it hadn't been easy to convince his dad to let him go on a weeks vacation to New York. Which wasn't really where they were going anyway. Derek had bought the three of them tickets to South America, he still wouldn't tell Stiles which country they'd be in. His reasoning had been that he didn't trust the Argents, and thought they might try to follow them. Summer vacation had started for him and Scott two weeks ago, so it was as good a time as any to go on a trip. But convincing his dad and Mrs. McCall to let them go had taken time. Not that either parent knew they'd be travelling with Derek Hale. Even after his name had been cleared, Sheriff Stilinsky still didn't trust him. So Stiles had to meet him at the airport, and only after his dad had dropped him off and left.

Stiles sighed, propped his feet up on Derek, and lay down on the bench. He continued his game of Angry Birds, feeling that he might as well make himself comfortable. Derek mindlessly played with his shoelaces while watching the ever changing flight schedules. He snuck glances at Derek every few minutes, noting the mans growing sulleness. Pretty soon he heard a low grumble coming from the depths of Dereks chest. The last thing they needed at this point was an angry werewolf in the middle of a crowded area. Stiles sat up, adjusting his position, and lay his head in Dereks lap. He reached up, and wove his fingers through Derek's.

"We wont be here forever." He said. "And until then, you can regale me with the tale of why we had to do this." Derek looked down at him, the grumbling subsiding. Stiles liked that he was able to calm Derek with a simple look.

"You already know." He said. "Scott has a lot to learn. More than I can teach him. He may think he's got a handle his abilities, but he doesn't know the first thing about real control."

"So, we're going to a completely different continent-"

"Stiles, you know all this." Derek said. "Scott can't go by himself, and I'm not leaving you home undefended." He looked down with an intense look. "If anything were to happen to you..."  
>"Yeah, yeah. End of your world, all hope is lost, having to wander the world in a half existence...I get it." Stiles said it carelessly, waving a hand. He'd heard Derek describe how his life would be if something happened to Stiles. And in truth, Stiles felt completely the same way about Derek. But it was all a bit too heavy for him at the moment. Derek was staring at him with those impenetrable eyes, and Stiles rolled his own. He lifted his head up, planting a soft kiss on Dereks cheek. "I'll be fine." He said. But Dereks mood didn't get any better. After another half hour Stiles had just begun to nod off, his head warm in Dereks lap, when their flight was called. Derek half lifted him to a standing position, placing him gently on the ground.<p>

"Time to go." He said. Stiles rubbed his eyes, grabbed his bag, and follwed as Derek led the way to the gate. With their tickets needing to be bought at such last minute, they couldn't sit together. But Stiles sat in the aisle seat right behind Derek. He pushed his bag into the overhead, grabbed a pillow, and sat down.

"This is going to wreak havoc to my internal clock, isn't it?" Stiles asked.

"You'll get used to the time change in a few days." Derek reassured him. He sat down and opened his laptop. Stiles sat back trying to get comfortable. After a while they took off, Stiles opened his eyes for long enough to watch the airport, along with his town, disappearing through the window. Soon everything was black. He closed his eyes and hoped the flight would go quickly.

Two hours later, he was ready to jump out of the plane. No longer tired, he'd asked the flight attendant for a soda. Big mistake. He'd already been asked by the flight attendant twice to stay seated, had been to the bathroom three times just for something to do, and was now in the middle of twiddling his thumbs and shaking both legs simultaneously. He watched Derek, baffled by how he could stay so still. He was back on his computer, Stiles kept sneaking peeks over the seat, but was unable to see what exactly he was doing.

"I'm just making sure my contact is going to meet us at the right spot." He said a bit impatiently as Stiles poked his head around the seat yet again.

"Sorry, but I'm losing my mind here." Stiles complained. "How much longer is this flight?"

"Few more hours." Derek said. "Just try to stay calm." But Stiles was far from calm. He sat back in his seat, fiddling with the arm rest. He watched a woman make her way to the bathroom and a sudden idea flashed through his mind. He leaned forward, an impish grin on his face.

"You know." He said quietly. "I've always wondered what it would be like to be part of the mile high club..." Derek whipped his head around, his eyes wide.

"Absolutely not!" He whispered through clenched teeth. "Are you crazy?"

"No, just infinitely bored." Stiles said. He sat back, chuckling. But images of him and Derek squeezed into that tiny bathroom made the time pass much more quickly. After a while, he leaned forward again.

"Transfering some funds." Derek whispered, answering the unasked question. Stiles peaked around the seat, looked at the computer screen for a second, and dropped his jaw. He always knew Derek had money. Family money was what Derek called it. Still, there was 'family money' and there was the small fortune on which he apparently sat. Stiles just shook his head, smiling to himself. _Derek's rich as a troll_, he thought. But it didn't matter. Stiles had everything he wanted. Well, he thought wryly, almost everything. He leaned forward, licked his lips, and put on the most secuctive voice he could muster.

"I'm going into the bathroom." He whispered right into his ear, so low that no one besides Derek could possibly hear. "I'll wait there exactly five minutes. If someone should come knocking, I wouldn't be opposed to maybe letting them...ah...share the room a bit." He exhaled against Derek's neck, barely flicking his toungue across his ear. He heard Derek's breath catch, and saw him stiffen. Smiling to himself, Stiles got up, and slowly walked to the bathroom. He turned his head back to see Derek staring intently after him. He closed the door and leaned against the sink. He almost laughed at the thought of Derek not showing up. He knew the wolf would be weighing the pros and cons in his head. And although the cons of having sex in a public bathroom on an airplane far outweighed the pros, it didn't change the fact that Stiles was in there waiting. Four and a half minutes later, there was a tap at the door. Stiles opened the door, and grinned in victory.

"Damn you." Derek said before Stiles pulled him in, locked the door, and attacked him.

...

Stiles was rather content as they exited the plane, Derek had seen to that. In his opinion, forty-five minutes in the bathroom had been a great use of their time. He grinned back at Derek, who looked at him shaking his head, but grinning nonetheless. Derek hooked his arm around Stiles and they set off through the airport to find Scott. Stiles had last spoken to him back at the last airport, and he said his flight had been on time. They walked over to where Scott was supposed to meet them. Scanning the crowd, Stiles couldn't see him anywhere. He looked up at Derek who he knew was using his other senses to find his friend.

"He hasn't been here." Derek said, at once on alert. "At least not anywhere near here."

"He could still be in the airport, maybe he just got lost. You know, neither one of us speak the language here." Stiles had finally found out when they landed that they were in Equador. More specifically, they were in Guayaquil. He'd never been out of the country before, and he stuck close to Derek as they made their way through the crowd. He tried calling Scott on his phone a few times, but only got voicemail. Every now and then, Derek would take a deep breath, and Stiles could see his aggitation rising the longer they searched. He kept a firm grip around Derek's arm, trying to keep him calm. Grunting in frustration, he finally made his way to the information desk and spoke to the man there in quick spanish.

"He hasn't seen him." Derek said, turning away. "I shouldn't have made us split up. What was I thinking?"

"Hey, you said yourself that it was safer if we were seperated." Stiles said, getting nervous despite himself. "Throw the Argents off the trail, you know? They want Scott just as much as they want you, and by sending him on a different route it betters our chances of losing them. And plus, we spoke to Scott, he said his plane was on time and he'd wait for us here. Maybe he just got hungry or something." Stiles was trying to convince himself as much as Derek. "Is there, like, a food court around here somewhere?" Derek just looked down at him, not answering. Stiles knew that he was first and foremost Derek's top priority. But if Scott was in danger, he'd hate himself. They made their way through the airport again, this time heading toward the smell of coffee and food. Stiles looked around, his eyes darting from one person to the next, when suddenly his phone rang. He grabbed it, seeing it was Scotts number, and slid the button down, unlocking it.

"Hey, man, where the hell are you?" Stiles said.

"Oh, sorry." He heard Scotts voice, and sighed in relief. "I just now noticed the missed calls. I had my phone on silent cuz the lady on the plane made me turn it off. I see you, look to your left." Stiles looked over and saw Scott waving from a table, his phone pressed against his ear. Derek followed Stiles' gaze, and clenched his teeth.

"Tell him I'm gonna kill him." Derek growled. Scotts smile faded from across the crowd, and Stiles knew he'd heard Derek. He ended the call, and they went to join him.

"Before we start the slaughter, just know that I waited like a good boy at the gate, but you guys are five freaking hours late and I got hungry." Scott said hurriedly when they sat down. Stiles couldn't deny he was hungry as well, so they ordered two more plates and Derek ate in silence as the two boys caught eachother up.

"So, you talk to Allison yet?" Stiles asked between bites. Allison had refused point blank to join her fathers quest to hunt the wolves. She was currently staying with Lydia, and the rift between her and her father had made things between her and Scott that much more complicated. Not to mention, she was still in a bit of shock and mourning from the death of her Aunt.

"Yeah, and I still hate the fact that I'm not there to protect her." He eyed Derek.

"We've been over this. There's no danger for the crazy Argent's daughter At least, not at the moment." Derek said evenly.

"No, you've been over this." Scott said. "I don't like the fact that I'm dragged down here-"

"Dragged?" Derek interrupted. "You're acting like you did this against your will. As I recall, you agreed-"

"Only because you just _had_ to kill Peter. Just because you're the Alpha now, doesn't mean I have to go along with every little whim you have." Scott relatiated. "I never once said-"

"Hey, Scott shutup." Stiles said. Scott looked at him, surprised. Stiles was almost as surprised as Scott and he and Derek both looked at him. "W-what I mean is that, Derek's just looking out for us, you know? I mean, he paid for our trip down here, he just as easily could've left us to fend for ourselves."

"That's where you're wrong." Scott said, his eyes were on Derek even though he directed his words at Stiles. "Derek couldn't have left you there anymore easily than he could've left his arm, or leg behind. You're tied to him now, no matter what you may think." That low rumble was again eminating from deep within Derek's chest. Stiles' eyes moved from one wolf to the other, neither one blinked.

"What did Peter tell you?" Derek grunted.

"Enough." Scott said. "He told me about the Mating. He told me that you'd already been through it, but he didn't know with who. You see Stiles, when a werewolf-"

"That's enough." Derek growled. The look in his eyes told them they were past the point of arguing. "You have no right." Scott stared defiantly back at Derek for a minute before finally looking away.

"Fine, have it your way." Scott said. "But he'll find out eventually."

"Find what out?" Stiles asked, but Derek just sat, his eyes staring forward. "Scott?" He turned to his friend, who threw his empty cup onto his empty plate.

"It doesn't matter." He said almost bitterly. "Like Derek said, it's not my place to tell." They left the airport in silence, Stiles keeping his mouth shut, a rare occurance.

...

They got to the hotel and brought the bags in. The taxi ride had been awkward, Stiles trying now and then to break the tension, but being unsuccessful. It was almost a relief to bid Scott good night and join Derek in the room next door. It was a nice hotel with a big suite, but Stiles was more concerned with getting some answers out of Derek.

"So." He started, kicking his shoes off and sprawling out on the bed.

"I don't want to talk about it." Derek said. He threw his duffle bag onto the chair and went into the bathroom.

"That's well and all, but you're not the only one who has a say in this." Stiles called. "That was some pretty heavy stuff back there." He heard the shower turn on, and sighed. Opening the door to the bathroom, he sat on the toilet while Derek undressed and stepped into the shower.

"Derek, I know we started this thing pretty fast, and you're not the talkative type, but I need some answers here." Stiles called around the curtain. "What did Scott mean when he said that I'm tied to you? Cuz it sounded pretty serious." He waited as Derek finished showering and held up a towel to him when he came out. Derek wrapped the towel around his waist and looked at Stiles.

"It's not how I wanted you to find out." He said.

"Talk to me." Stiles said. Derek watched him for a minute, Stiles could see the debate going on behind his eyes. Finally he heaved a sigh and went to get dressed.

"I didn't want to tell you yet because I didn't want to freak you out." He said sitting on the bed. Stiles sat next to him. "It has to do with, well with mating actually. You remember I told you werewolves mate for life?"

"Yeah." Stiles clearly recalled this. "Which I still find sort of strange. I mean, what if one of them dies?"

"Yeah, that's exactly what this has to do with." Derek continued. "Once we find them, then there's a physical reaction that takes place. It's like, we're linked. Like with you, I'm more in tune with you than I am with anyone. And it will stay like that. But..." Derek paused.

"But?" Stiles urged.

"If they die, the wolves mate, I mean, then that chemical that links them...It's kind of hard to explain." Derek said. He wasn't looking at Stiles, but Stiles stared intensely at him. "It sort of turns to a poison."

"A what?" Stiles wasn't sure he was understanding correctly. "What do you mean 'poison'?"

"I mean, with you, I'm stronger. Faster, my senses are quicker. But without you...Distance effects it, too. If I were to have left you behind and just come here with Scott, I would've been weaker. All I would be able to concentrate on is whether or not your safe. And if you were to...you know...get killed, the link that ties us together would leave me in that state. I'd always be weaker, and eventually it would sap me of my abilities altogether."

"What?" Stiles exclaimed. "You-you wouldn't be able to change?"

"I've seen what happens to those that loose their mates. It's not pretty. It's a half existence." Derek said. Stiles was speechless. He didn't know what to think. He remembered the night Derek had told him that he was his mate. He'd rolled over in bed sleepily, and whispered it to him. At the time, Stiles had thought it was a romantic, but intangible idea. But now, it seemed something almost sinister.

"So..." But Stiles was at a complete loss. Derek looked at him, scrutinizing him.

"I'm gonna kill Scott for bringing it up." He growled. "You didn't need to hear this. Not yet."

"No, it's good I know." Stiles said quickly. "Yes, it freaked me out a little, but I'm glad I know. I can kind of, respect the effect I have on you more. I won't take it for granted." Derek flashed a smile.

"That's not what I wanted." He said. "I like you taking it for granted. Like that little stunt you pulled on the plane. You knew I'd meet you in the bathroom. I like the fact that you can read me." Stiles gave him an uncertain smile.

"So, why did Scott seem so upset about it?" Stiles asked.

"I think it was more a jealousy thing." Derek replied. "The alpha can tell when a beta has mated. He could smell it on me. But not on Scott."

"So he and Allison...?"

"Not mates." Derek said. "Just hormonal teenagers."

"But Scott loves her." Stiles said.

"I dont doubt that." Derek said. "But he hasn't found his one yet. A werewolf can be in love, even if that person isn't his mate. But when he does meet her, or in my case him, then that other person ceases to matter."

"So if Scott finds his 'one', and he's still with Allison?" Stiles wasn't sure if he wanted to know the answer.

"I don't know. Honestly, it's different with Bittens. Maybe they do find their mates in a different way. I could be completely wrong." Derek said.

"That sucks." Stiles said. He stretched out onto the bed. "Sounds like Scotts got the bad end of an even worse bargain." Derek moved closer to Stiles, laying down next to him.

"It's not an easy life." Derek said. "And the choices we make are even harder."

"What about your choice about me?"

"It was never a choice with you." Derek said. "But if it had been, it would have been the easiest one I've ever made." Stiles leaned his head up, planting a soft kiss against Derek's lips.

"I'm glad it's me." He said. "Cuz if you'd started dating me, then realized I wasn't your mate, I think I might have had to kill you myself." Derek's laugh filled the room.

"Lucky me it is you." He said. "Unleashing the wrath of Stiles...quite a terrifying thought."

"Hey, I can be aggresive." Stiles said defensively. "You've seen me on the field."

"Yes, I have." Derek conceded. "You can be intense when you want to be. That is, when your mouth doesn't get in the way." Stiles rolled his eyes, then pushed Derek down with every intention of showing him just how aggressive he could be.

...

The next day they left the hotel to followed Derek through the city. Scott's mood had seemed to improve since the previous night, having had a long conversation with Allison. He was still upset he couldn't tell her where he really was, but took it in stride. Stiles busied himself with watching the city as they headed west, looking at the buildings and sights. He resigned himself to being the nuetral party between the two stuborn wolves, Scott still wouldn't talk to Derek. They drove for a while, the city becoming less populated the further they drove. Soon, they were outside of the city altogether and the forest grew more dense. Not too long after that, they were on a dirt path twisting roughly through trees and hills. Stiles trusted that Derek knew where they were heading because all the streets signs and directions were in a different language and by the time their taxi had pulled up to a small brick building, little more than a large house, somewhere on the outskirts, he was completely lost. They got out of the cab, Derek handed the driver some foreign money that he'd exchanged that morning, and they headed inside. There were a few people waiting inside, and Derek greeted them.

"Hale, it's been a long time." The eldest man said. He looked to be about forty, but he was tall and trim, and a scar marked his left cheek. He had dark skin and flashed his gray eyes at Scott and Stiles. "What's this?" The man asked, his eyes raking across Stiles' face.

"I can vouch for him." Derek said evenly.

"You know the rules, Derek. No humans." He said, his eyes still on Stiles, who couldn't help but be nervous. He had a hard-to-place accent that added to his intimidation.

"I said I can vouch for him." Derek said.

"While you've proven you're trustworthy, Derek, I simply cannot change the rules." He said. Stiles looked up at Derek, who clenched his jaw.

"Fine." He grunted, and turned to Scott. "Go wait outside. This shouldn't take long." He and Scott turned to leave, but Derek grabbed Scott by the jacket. "Do not let him out of your sight, you understand?"

"Yeah, gotcha." Scott said. They headed out the door, Stiles glancing back at Derek, who watched him leave. They sat on a ledge outside.

"Did you know they were all werewolves?" Scott asked, his eyes on the building.

"What?" Stiles said. "They were?"

"Yeah. I could smell them when we drove up. There's at least five of them. Why'd Derek bring us here?"

"I have no idea." Stiles said. "I mean, I thought that he just wanted to get us away from the Argents."

"Me too." Scott said. "Hush a minute, let me see if I can hear them." He closed his eyes, concentrating. Stiles watched silently for a moment, then Scott jerked his head sideways, clapping his hands to his ears, and hissed in pain. "Ahhh! What was that?" Stiles leaned down beside him.

"What happened?" He asked.

"There's some sort of high-pitched noise coming from the building." He said, rubbing his ears.

"What does that mean?" Stiles asked, feeling panicked. "Should we go it, do you think Derek's in trouble?" He was already standing up, ready to race into the building, but Scott grabbed him.

"I think Derek's fine." He said. "It's probably just a security thing, you know. I mean, if they've got werewolves around here, then they probably don't want to be overheard."

"Yeah." Stiles said, trying to get his heartrate back to a normal pace. "Yeah, you're probably right." He sat down, and watched the building closely. After almost half an hour, they emerged, Derek in front. The boys stood up in unison, expectant, but Derek didn't say anything. The man who had made them leave before came up to Stiles, and glared at him.

"I've given you permission to come to our facility." He said seriously. "Know, though, that no human has ever been inside, and if it weren't for my complete trust in Derek, you would have been killed the minute you stepped out of that taxi."

Stiles swallowed. "Uh, thanks." He said numbly. He chanced a glance behind the man and noticed two others with him. A girl with long dark hair and olive skin, and another man who was younger, probably even younger than Derek, also dark haired. They didn't look like the joking type. Stiles decided it would be in his best interest to keep his mouth shut. The man continued to eye him for a moment, then turned to Scott.

"So, you're the young Bitten." He said, stalking around Scott, looking at him from every angle, sizing him up. Stiles had to hand it Scott, he held his ground.

"Yeah." He said. "And who are you?"

"My name is Lorenzo." He said, still watching Scott carefully. "My associates," He waved to the two behind him, also watching Scott, "are Evanna and Demetri." They nodded to Scott. "They will be your guides, watch them and learn from them."

"Guides?" Scott asked. "I don't understand."

"We will be taking you to train, and to learn to harness and control your skills as a werewolf." Lorenzo continued.

"You'll what?" Scott asked, clearly still confused.

"Have you told him nothing, Derek?" Lorenzo turned his head to Derek, who shook his own. "Well, boy, where do you think Derek learned his skills?"

"Uh...I kinda assumed from his family." Scott said blankly.

"Half right." Lorenzo said. "He and his sister were brought here when they were a bit younger than you are now. Before that, they'd learned control from their parents. However, their father wished them to learn to fight, to harness their abilities to be able to take the offensive. I must say, Derek was more than up to the challenge. A more aggresive wolf I've never trained. Or a more capable pupil." Stiles looked at Derek, a stab of pride going through him. "Do you think you'll be up for the challenge?" Scott glanced at Derek, who nodded.

"Yes." Scott said. Lorenzo watched him for a moment, then turned and began heading toward the wilderness.

"Good." He called back. "Gather your things, and follow us." Evanna and Demetri turned and followed Lorenzo without a word. Scott grabbed his dufflebag, Derek and Stiles following his lead. They took an hour long march into the trees, Stiles feeling slow and awkward next to the capable and sure-footed wolves. The four older wolves led a quick pace, neither slowing or resting, and Scott kept up easily. Stiles, however, was panting for breath. It was mostly uphill, and winding his way through underbrush and fallen branches, following no noticable path was difficult. They soon came to the top of the hill, more like a small mountain in Stiles' opinion. He looked out in awe at the sprawling green terrain.

"Wow, this is beautiful." He said, still trying to catch his breath. "So, where is this werewolf facility exactly?" He looked around, but only saw more and more trees. Derek looked at him, smiling.

"You're about to see why no human has ever been there." He said.

"I don't like your tone." Stiles said. "That tone usually means something bad for me." But Derek didn't answer. He just turned his head to Lorenzo, who raised his head, and howled. Stiles was forced to cover his ears as the sound peirced through his head. Looking over, he saw Scott was doing the exact same thing. Derek, however, just looked up at Lorenzo, seeming only slightly interested. Evanna and Demetri, however, watched with a feral glare. Lorenzo looked back down at them.

"We'll be travelling fast now." He said, his voice a bit rasped. "Scott, time to show us what you can do. Watch us, learn how we move as a pack, observe and take it in. No lessons are repeated. You watch the first time, and do the second time. Understood?" Scott nodded, determined. Stiles watched for a moment, then gasped as Lorenzo took a running start, and dove off the side of the cliff. Stiles was dumbfounded as Evanna and Demetri did the exact same thing. He and Scott ran toward the edge, and watched as the three wolves caught nearly impossible crags and cracks in the side of the cliff, and made their way down, spider-like, until they were obscured by trees.

"Scott...holy shit! Did you just see-SCOTT!" Stiles reached out, but was too late as Scott took a running start, and did the exact same thing. Stiles dove to the ground, grasping the hard earth, unable to tear his eyes away from his best friend falling into nothingness. Falling...falling...and then his arm shot out, grabbing the closest crag, and making his way nimbly down just as the others had done. "I...I...I..." He was unable to form a coherent sentence. "He's alright." He said weakly. He looked back at Derek who was laughing quietly.

"I'll give the kid one thing, he's got balls." He chuckled. "Kinda reminds me of myself."

"But, but...DEREK, THERE'S NO POSSIBLE WAY I CAN DO THAT!" Stiles yelled.

"Of course you can't." Derek said. "No one expects you to."

"But, then...how..." Stiles was still finding it hard to form a sentence. Derek swooped down, planting a hard kiss on his mouth.

"What do you think I'm here for?" And before Stiles could work out what he meant, he was thrown onto Derek's back and barely had time to see the edge of the cliff rushing towards him before it disappeared into nothing but open sky. His scream was drowned out by the rushing of air as he and Derek flew downward.


	2. Chapter 2

**Sorry for the wait. I had the most intense case of writers-block. I had absolutely no idea where I was taking this story, but hopefully it came out alright. Thanks so much for the reviews, and hopefully you'll enjoy this chapter. I own nothing about Teen Wolf. **

Stiles looked out over the treetops as the sun rose over the horizon. He was in a small treetop hut, the same one he and Derek had been staying in for the past week. There were several of the same type of structures surrounding them, all blending in naturally with the forest. He hadn't even seen them at first until Derek had pointed them out. They were little more than wooden floors jutting out of the tops of the trees with grass ceilings. It didn't do much to keep out the rain or wind, but Stiles seemed like the only person who really cared. Scott had taken to the place instantly, bonding with several of the other werewolves that lived there. There were over twenty wolves living there at the moment, and eight of them were within two years of Scott and Stiles. Only one of them was a Bitten, Maya, and she'd been the one Scott had the most in common with. Like him, she'd been bitten in order for an Alpha to secure a stronger pack. Eventually she was able to escape and had found her way to Lupus Range, which is what the facility was called. There weren't any actual buildings, it was more a very large campsite. Stiles had learned that Lupus Range had been founded by Lorenzo twenty years ago after his two daughters, both werewolves, had been killed by Hunters. He'd sought his vengeance, and afterward had decided to make a place where werewolves could go to learn to use their abilities. He'd had two partners previous to Evanna and Demetri, but they'd gone their separate ways. Evanna and Demetri had been two of his best students, and had decided to stay and become guides themselves.

Derek had given Stiles this brief history lesson the first night they'd been there, as all the others had gathered around the fire and had their dinner. Wild game seemed to be a staple in the diet here. Usually undercooked. It was up to the students to gather their own food. Scott had seemed a bit hesitant at first, but with the encouragement of the others, had come back with a kill the next day. They were taught to be self-reliant, and how to survive in nature. It interested Stiles to no end to see how Derek had spent his formative years as a teenager. He'd told Stiles that he'd been sent there by his father when he was fifteen, and had lived there until eighteen. While he wasn't allowed, or even able, to go with Scott when he was training, he spent his days roaming the grounds. Derek accompanied him most days, but sometimes had to go with Scott.

"Hey." Stiles' thoughts were interrupted by a sleepy Derek walking up behind him and wrapping his arms around him. Stiles' slight shiver resulted in Derek pulling his blanket around the two of them. "What's up?"

"Nothing." Stiles said. "Just admiring the view."

"Me too." Derek murmured, his lips pressing against Stiles' neck. "The sunrise is nice too." The deep chuckle made Stiles' shiver again, though having nothing to do with the chilly morning.

"Cheesy." He mumbled before his lips were covered by Dereks. They'd had precious little time together since they'd arrived at the Range and Stiles could feel his pent-up hormones begging to be released. He turned his attention to Derek, feeling his warm hands as they pressed against his side, making their way to his back. Wrapping his arms around Dereks neck, he pulled himself up for a better position. It wasn't usually Stiles that took the initiative, but Derek seemed hesitant, so Stiles pushed forward, making Derek back into the trunk of the tree. They slid down, their lips staying locked together, and Stiles made quick work of discarding Dereks unbuttoned shirt. He moaned softly, making himself comfortable on Dereks lap. Derek, however, sat up, and tried to gently push him off. Stiles gripped him tightly, not letting go.

"No." He said. "I've been stuck here a week, and I need some form of entertainment that doesn't involve hunting, training, or Scott describing with cringe-worthy detail his ability to smell out, and kill a deer. Now, you're going to sit down and let me do whatever I want to you."

"Gladly." Derek said. "But I just thought you might like to know that we're in a camp full of werewolves who have ultra fine hearing, and right now there are three young wolves a few trees over who are sniggering at what they know we're doing. One of them being Scott." Stiles' cheeks flamed red, and he hastily pushed himself off of Derek, who just laughed.

"I'm gonna kill Scott." He said. Derek swooped down and planted a kiss on his still-red cheek.

"Don't worry about it, I'll make him pay in training today." Derek assured him. Stiles had to admit, that sounded fun. Derek had been helping Evanna and Demetri train the younger wolves. Stiles hadn't been able to see him in action yet because they'd all been out in the woods doing what Stiles had dubbed 'wolfy things'. Scott and Derek had told him it mostly consisted of a lot of running and hunting, and that he'd never be able to keep up. He'd busied himself with roaming the grounds of the Range, and was now as familiar with it as he'd ever be. What he wasn't allowed to do, at least not without Derek, was leave the grounds. This wasn't only a rule made by Lorenzo, but a rule strictly enforced by Derek and Scott. They warned him that there were predators in the forest that would rip him apart as soon as look at him. But after a week of repetition, he was starting to feel itchy. He was glad, therefore, when Derek had told him that they'd be using the training course that day. The younger wolves had been there longer than Scott, but he'd really taken to the life, and was now almost up to their level of experience. It was for that reason that Derek had agreed to let him train with them that day.

Stiles pulled his pants and shirt on, and waited for Derek to do the same. Derek had traded in his usual leather jacket and jeans for the more practical (though in Stiles' opinion, less seductive) Guide outfits. They consisted of heavy black cargo pants, strong cotton shirts, and nothing else. Stiles still had a hard time believing Scott when he said that running shoeless through the forest was freeing, but he took his word for it.

"Ready?" Derek asked, and Stiles sighed.

"You know," He said as he moved behind Derek and wrapped his arms around his neck. "These guys should really invest in some good ladders. Even rope ladders would do. Hell, I'd even take boards nailed into the side of the tree." Derek just chuckled as he lifted Stiles' legs and carried him, piggyback, to the edge of the floor. Stiles, as usual, closed his eyes as they neared the edge. He hated heights, and ever since Derek had flown off the side of a cliff with him clinging for life, he'd hated them all the more. Unfortunately, the only way to get up and down the trees was to climb. And there weren't nearly enough close-cropped branches for Stiles to manage on his own. So for the past week he'd had to allow Derek to carry him while he clawed his way up and down the trunk. Stiles felt a slight jolt in his stomach as gravity left and Derek swung down to the nearest branch. From there, he dug his claws deep into the wood and made his way quickly to the ground. Stiles only opened his eyes when he felt solid earth beneath him. "Thats getting really old." He huffed. Derek laughed and led the way to the area where the others were already sitting around the fire pit where all of their meals were eaten.

"Hmmm, and what's on the menu this morning? Corn flakes? Pancakes with a little maple syrup?" Stiles wandered over to sit next to Scott who was chewing on the roasted leg of an unidentified animal. "Of course not. Looks like its carcass for breakfast again."

"Hey, man." Scott said, scootching over to make room between him and another young wolf named Patrick. Stiles sat, his appetite quickly disappearing as he watched the other wolves tear into their meat. "So, uh...you have a good morning?" Scott couldn't have hidden his smirk if he'd tried, which resulted in Stiles shoving him over. Scott continued giggling.

"There's no damn privacy here." Stiles mumbled, picking up and smelling a piece of meat from the large platter. It smelled old, and Stiles put it back down. "No damn human food, either..." Derek appeared behind him and handed him some fruit, which he began eating hungrily.

"I didn't say this was gonna be easy." He said, sitting next to Stiles and grabbing some meat.

"Is this all your diet consists of? Because I know it can't be healthy." Stiles said. "You've all eaten nothing but dead things since we got here."

"He just doesn't get it." Patrick smirked. His thick blonde curls hung loosely around his shoulders, and had a fair amount of grease in them. "I've been living outdoors since I was a pup. Dad's always made it that way. He says cities are for weak humans." Stiles raised an eyebrow, stifling a witty remark. He was fairly certain Patrick could rip his eyes out with one quick swipe of his large grubby paws, but he didn't want to instigate a fight in which Derek would be forced to defend him. Derek, being an Alpha, was already the most powerful wolf at camp other than Lorenzo.

"Alright, finish up and lets get to work!" Derek called. The wolves followed him to the training grounds, Stiles jogging to keep up. They walked for a few minutes, and Stiles kept close to Derek. Scott meanwhile, was racing Patrick and Maya. Scott had found that he was one of the fastest, and never missed a chance to challenge everyone to a race. Stiles watched them, laughing at the look on Patricks face when Scott went whizzing past him. None of them wore shoes, but Stiles refused to walk without his sneakers. He caught up with Derek, who smiled down at him.

"So, what exactly is this training you'll all be doing today?" He asked.

"It won't take more than a few hours." Derek replied. "It's basically testing flexibility and I'll be throwing in some acrobatics. Theses kids have been living as werewolves their entire lives, except Scott and Maya, but none of them have any idea how to fight without relying on instinct. While it's a great advantage over most opponents, sometimes it can be your worst enemy. When we change, we're at our most powerful, but if we rely on instinct alone it can get us killed. Thats what I'm going to try to show these kids today." Stiles thought about that the rest of the way. He knew Scott had had a tough time controlling himself, but he'd gotten better with time. Derek never seemed to loose control, even at the full moon. Stiles wondered if it was just due to of years of practice. "Hey." Derek pulled him close as the other students ran off into the training field. "I know you're getting frustrated here, this isn't your type of thing. But later I promise we'll go for a nice long walk, just the two of us." Stiles was taken aback for a second, but recovered quickly.

"Yeah." He said. "Sounds great. But, can you promise me something?" Derek looked at him, eyebrow raised. "Just, no more heights for a while?" He laughed with Derek, who pecked him on top of his head, and turned to join the group.

"Line up!" He called. Demetri and Evanna flanked him, standing stoically by his side. They weren't very talkative, Stiles mused. The younger wolves lined up in front of Derek, listening eagerly. Stiles had to hand it to wolves, they seemed to be quite disciplined. They took orders quietly without back-talk, and tried their hardest to complete their tasks. Stiles chalked it up to the wolf side of their personality. "Now, today we're going to be testing your skill level when it comes to escaping your opponent. You're all able to change at will, I want you to do that now." Stiles watched as the teens appearances shifted from normal hairless features to fanged and growling predators. He sat down at the base of a tree, trying to look as inconspicuous as possible. Scott caught his eye, and winked. Stiles would have laughed had the situation been a little less threatening. "Pay attention." Derek continued as he began making his way onto the field. There were several different obstacles they would have to make their way through. "There are no rules to this, except one. Escape." Stiles caught a knowing glance shared between Demetri and Evanna. Without warning, they attacked.

Stiles eyes were glued to Derek as he ran, lunged, and flipped. At no point did he stop to try and fight the two other wolves, but rather he used his surroundings and higher senses to get away from them. The other wolves watched intently, low growls of excitement rumbled through the group. Derek was able to make his way through all of the obstacles, although there was never a set course of action. Like he'd said, all he was attempting was escape. Demetri and Evanna weren't making it easy, though, as they came at him from all sides, never letting him slow down. Eventually they were able to back him into a corner. Just when Demetri lunged for him, however, he jumped into the low-hanging branches of the tree he was against, and swung over their heads. The whole thing was over in less than ten minutes.

"You've got to know when to run." Derek said, as Demetri and Evanna took their stances for the next opponent. "Sometimes you will be outnumbered, and thats when these skills will come in handy. Now, I want Patrick and Gordon up first." He paired them off, giving bits of advice here and there as he saw fit. Last to go was Scott and Maya. Maya was caught by Demetri, and Scott turned to help her, and was caught by Evanna.

"Scott, you can't let your feelings get you caught!" Derek called. "This isn't a game, this is life! If you're caught by Hunters, you're going to be killed!"

"I know." Scott said, breathing hard after all the running.

"You're letting your emotion get in the way of what needs to be done." Derek said, still angry. "You've come so far, but you still have a lot to learn."

"I said I know." Scott growled. Stiles, sensing trouble, jogged over to the pair.

"Hey, Scott, that was awesome." Everyone looked at him. "Uh-um...yeah, this whole training session has been very interesting. Uh, so,-" He was abruptly cut off by Derek pulling him by the arm away from the others.

"What the hell are you doing?" His red eyes flashed dangerously, but didn't phase Stiles. He'd been threatened by Derek too many times to take it seriously.

"Hey, you may have a superhuman sense of smell, but I can smell a Derek/Scott dog fight a mile away." Stiles retorted. "I don't think this is the best place for one, do you?" Derek growled, baring his fangs, but Stiles just stood there, raising his eyebrow.

"Really?" He said sarcastically. "You really think that whole wolf thing works on me anymore? Scott still freaks me out sometimes, but I stopped fearing you the second you kissed me." That shut Derek up, Stiles grinned.

"Fine." Derek said. "Just don't interrupt again, alright?" Stiles smiled innocently, and pecked Derek on the lips.

"Alright." He said, and watched as Derek went back to his students. He walked back to his tree, making himself as comfortable as he could, and watched the rest of the lesson. It was a few hours until Derek was satisfied and told them to take a break. They were to meet up with Demetri and Evanna that evening for sparring lessons. Stiles shuffled his feet, anxious for Derek to keep his promise. He grabbed his arm when Derek walked over to him and pulled him towards the forest.

"So, this walk you promised..." Stiles said. Derek barked a laugh, and consented, walking with Stiles. They moved through the trees easily, Stiles content with holding onto Dereks arm. They talked and Stiles felt some of his frustration evaporating. He still wanted to go home, but knew that there wasn't much point in returning without Derek and Scott. Derek did his best to help Stiles look on the bright side, and Stiles, realizing the effort Derek was making on his behalf, smiled and kissed him.

"There's a reason I brought you out here." Derek said after they'd been walking almost an hour.

"Oh, finally." Stiles said, and hopped up, wrapping his arms around Derek's neck and kissing him. Derek, however, put him back down.

"This had better be good." Stiles said, refusing to let Derek's neck go.

"It is." Derek said. "I just wanted to let you know that we're being watched." Stiles twisted his head around, but didn't see anyone. "Look up into the trees." Derek continued. Stiles looked up, scanning the trees carefully but saw nothing. "Every inch of this place is surrounded by security equipment. Lorenzo installed them himself, and though he might not look it, he's a whiz at electronics. There are security cameras, motion detectors, and heat sensors all around us. If anyone so much as sets a toe in his boundaries, he'll know."

"So...there's no chance of escape?" Stiles said, suddenly nervous. But Derek just laughed.

"No, that's not what I meant." He said. "This place is a haven, a refuge for werewolves. Lorenzo doesn't want to trap us, he wants to keep us safe. We have the right to leave whenever we like. It's people that mean to harm us that he wants to watch out for."

"Alright." Stiles said. "So, you brought me all the way out here to tell me about security cameras? I don't know, Hale, this definitely isn't one of the best dates. You might be losing your touch..."

"No, dummy, I didn't bring you out here to tell you about security cameras." Derek smiled. "I brought you out here because about fifty feet ago, we walked out of range of said cameras..." He let the sentence hang. A wide smile spread across Stiles' face.

"Ahhhh, I getcha." Stiles said. "Smooth, Hale, very smooth." Derek wrapped his arms around Stiles' middle, lifting him up until they were eye level.

"What was that you were saying before, about needing some form of entertainment?" Derek laughed. His next comment was interrupted by Stiles' lips.

...

That night Stiles was much happier than he'd been in the last few days. He even joined the other wolves around the fire, as they each excitedly replayed the days actions. He took his place next to Derek, who pulled him close. They ate in silence, each just enjoying the others company. Stiles couldn't help but smile as he watched Scott interact with the others. He looked so happy, even though Stiles knew he longed to see Allison. They'd be leaving in a few days, though, and Stiles was already looking forward to sleeping in his own bed. As the night wore on, the group slowly began to disperse, each going to their own trees to sleep. Soon it was just Scott, Stiles and Derek left sitting by the dying fire. They talked for a while, Stiles enjoying catching up with Scott. Soon, though Derek told them it was time to get to sleep. They would be training extra early in the morning. Stiles and Scott said their goodnights, and Stiles followed Derek to their tree.

"I'm really starting to wonder how Tarzan did it." Stiles said as he hopped up on Dereks back. They were at the top in a matter of seconds. Exhausted, he lay down without bothering to take off his shoes. Derek lay next to him, and wrapped his arms around him. "You know, if you let me, I bet I could watch the training tomorrow."

"I'm sorry, Stiles." Derek mumbled sleepily. "You'd never be able to keep up. I'd love it if you could come. You know that. But it gets pretty dangerous. The only reason I let you come today was because it was a controlled environment. Plus, if one of the kids hurt you, I might not be able to stop myself from hurting them."

"Huh." Stiles said. "How chivalrous." Derek chuckled into his neck. They were both asleep in minutes.

The next morning, Stiles woke to find an empty tree. Looking down over the edge, he felt a wave of vertigo hit him, and he stepped back. "Shit." He mumbled. "Nice, Derek, real nice. Let the kid whose afraid of heights stay in the tree all day..." He looked around, suddenly realizing just how small this treetop hut really was. He backed up against the tree, kneeling down until his hands were pressed against the floor. Nausea hit him and he felt breathless. The thought of trying to get down by himself was terrifying. He looked out at the edge again, and his heartrate picked up uncontrollably. Barely able to breath, he realized too late that he was having a panic attack. He put his head in his hands, trying to slow his breathing, but his hands shook badly. Suddenly, arms were around him, lifting him to his feet.

"Stiles!" Derek's voice cracked through his terror. He looked up wildly, and saw the dark eyes staring intensely back at him. He swallowed with great difficulty, but his knees weren't ready to support his weight. He sat back down, and rode another wave of nausea. Derek grabbed his hands to keep them from shaking. "Stiles, it's alright. I'm right here, you're fine." Derek whispered to him over and over until Stiles was able to calm down enough to talk.

"Do you know how long it's been since I've had a panic attack?" He said angrily. "You know I'm scared of heights, damnit. How could you leave me up here?" His breath was still unsteady, but he'd calmed down a bit.

"I'm really sorry." Derek held him close, and Stiles, over his terror, grabbed on to Derek. "I thought you'd still be asleep. I just went to wake the others. I'll never leave you up here alone again, promise."

"Derek, it's alright." Stiles said. "I know you wouldn't let anything happen to me. I was just scared." He looked up and saw Derek was slightly shaking as well. "You okay?"

"Yeah." Derek sighed. "When I felt your anxiety spike, I came racing as fast as I could. I thought you might be in trouble. I should've known better than to leave you here." Stiles pressed his forehead against Dereks.

"Well, I'm alright, so lets just get down from here." Derek nodded and carried him down quickly. When they were on solid ground, Stiles felt nothing but relief. He held onto Derek a minute longer.

"Are you sure you're alright?" Derek looked at him, and Stiles nodded.

"Stiles!" Scott came running over, looking worried. "What happened?"

"I'm fine, I just got a bit worked up, thats all." Stiles was starting to feel a bit ridiculous for overreacting.

"Did you leave him up there?" Scott turned to Derek. "You know he's scared of heights."

"Really, Scott, I'm fine. No big deal." Stiles reassured him.

"Yeah, I know it, I was trying to wake your ass up so we could get started. Believe it or not, Scott, I do know a few things about Stiles."

"Is that a fact?" Scott said, and Stiles stepped between the two.

"Time out, wolves." He said. "Scott, it was a mistake, and Derek apologized. Just leave it alone." The two wolves looked at eachother, but backed down. Stiles was getting tired of being their referee. "Just go do what you gotta do, alright. Both of you." Scott just shook his head, but walked away. Derek grabbed Stiles' hand before leaving.

"I really am sorry." He said.

"I know." Stiles sighed. "It's really emasculating here. First off, being the weakest slowest person around, while not an entirely new feeling, is still pretty annoying. But now, having a panic attack for almost no reason is just-" He was interrupted by Derek's lips. Stiles was surprised, but willing. He held onto Derek for as long as he could before the kiss was broken.

"You know why I had to come here, yeah?" Derek asked seriously. Stiles nodded. "And you know I couldn't leave you behind."

"I get it, Derek, I really do. Sorry I've been so pissy." Stiles said. Derek gave him another swift kiss.

"We'll be gone in a few days and then you'll get me all to yourself." Derek said.

"Sounds good. But for now, you've got your wolfy thing to do, and I think I'm gonna go for a run. I need to clear my head a bit." Stiles said. Derek nodded.

"We'll talk later, alright? I'll be here when you get back, and just be careful." Derek said. They parted and Stiles began jogging toward the woods where he and Derek had walked the previous day. It felt good to finally get some proper exercise, and he breathed the thick air deeply. The altitude hadn't affected him much, but he needed to pace himself as he ran. He thought about the reasons Derek had brought him there and why it was so necessary for Scott. He couldn't hold a grudge against either of them. Scott because he was his best friend and knew the training would keep him alive, and Derek because, well, Derek owned more than just his heart. At this point Stiles wasn't sure there was anything he wouldn't do for Derek. He smiled as he ran, enjoying the thought. He glanced up into the trees every so often, trying to see the cameras Derek had mentioned, but never saw any. It was when he had glanced up that he missed the tree root jutting out of the ground. He tripped, immediately spraining his ankle, and fell down a short ravine. Bushes and rocks scraped him as he fell. Finally, he stopped at the bottom, and looked up.

"Good going Stilinsky." He grunted as he hauled himself up. He tried to walk, but winced and sat back down. "That wolf-sense thing would really come in handy now, Hale." He called, knowing the wolf was miles away. He looked around, trying to figure out how to get out of there and wondering if he was out of range of Lorenzos cameras. He stood up, resolved to have a long painful trip back to the Range. Suddenly he felt a prick on his shoulder. Looking down, he thought he must be hallucinating, because surely that can't be a dart sticking out of his arm. He went to pluck it out, but his hand wouldn't cooperate. In fact, he was quickly loosing control of all his muscles. He fell backward hard, hitting his head against the ground. His vision blurred and he saw figures coming toward him.

"I can't believe we caught one out on their own." I female voice said. "I thought they traveled in packs." She giggled. Stiles could barely keep his eyes open, much less use his mouth to speak.

"Stay away from it until it's unconscious." A male voice floated over to Stiles.

"But it's just a pup." The female voice said. Stiles was quickly loosing consciousness. The last thing he remembered was rough hands pulling him up and then everything went black.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer- I own nothing Teen Wolf related. I do, however own a small stuffed wolf that I've named Stiles Hale. Yeah...**

** A/N- So...um...yeah. I have absolutely no excuse for why this took so long. I feel really guilty. *Hangs head in shame* All I can say is sorry for the wait. And thanks so much for the reviews and alerts. You guys really rock! This one's a bit short, but I promise the next chapter (the finale) will be longer. Hopefully you guys don't hate me too much for making you wait...And reviews are always appreciated and wanted and needed...Anywho, on with the tale...**

Derek was on his way back to the Range when he felt a sudden pull in his chest. Suddenly on alert, he looked around, all senses alive. Scott, who was just a few steps behind him, stopped as well.

"Derek?" He asked, but Derek held up a hand to quiet him. Without warning, he began racing through the woods. Scott, sensing trouble, followed closely. They came to a part of the woods where Stiles scent was apparent. Derek, now in wolf form, followed the scent with increasing anxiety. Scott changed as well, his whole body on alert. It was much easier to read Derek's emotions this way, and Scott could feel the panic growing in him. He couldn't begin to understand what had happened, but they followed Stiles' scent until they reached the parameters of the Range.

"No!" Derek growled. He looked around wildly, following the scent until it disappeared. They ran for another mile and a half, and Derek stopped. Scott came up behind him and they found tire tracks. They followed for as long as they could, but the tracks soon disappeared. Once they realized this, Derek began a slow, deep growl. Scott, sensing danger, backed away several paces. He could feel Derek's rage growing, and was almost overwhelmed by it. Suddenly Derek stood up straight, arched his back and gave a horrific wailing howl. Derek had never howled like this, Scott had never seen him lose control. But he was witnessing firsthand the rage an Alpha could exhibit. It terrified him, but something else happened in him as well. He'd only felt it once before, in the hallways of his school at night when Peter had tried to make him kill his friends. A savage instinct took hold, and even though Scott recognized it, it still scared him. Emotions ran through Scott, who knew he was feeling them secondhand. They flowed through Derek, and Scott felt them too, like rolling waves crashing through him again and again. Rage, terror, panic, but there was something else. It took Scott a second to recognize it, but once he did, he felt it completely. There was really only one word for it. Revenge. This scared Scott, but he knew he'd follow Derek anywhere if it meant getting Stiles back. Because Stiles disappearing wasn't a coincidence. Someone took him because of the wolves. Of that, Scott was certain. Scott wasn't sure what to do. He looked at Derek, and let his own anger wash over him. He wanted nothing more than to rip whoever had taken Stiles from limb to limb. But right now, Derek was his Alpha, and he must obey. Without a word, they turned around and ran back to Lupus Range.

...

Stiles opened his eyes slowly, an unfamiliar sight meeting him. It was dark outside, he could tell through the dirty window to his left. He was on a hard, cold cement floor. His vision swam for a second, and waves of nausea swept over him. His whole body tingled, his muscles felt numb, almost unattached. Taking deep breaths, he opened his eyes, fully taking in his surroundings. He was on his side, and found that trying to get up wasn't an option as someone had chained his hands behind his back. He felt the cold metal around his wrists, and tried, despite his feet also being chained, to at least move into a sitting position.

"Looks like the pups finally awake." A voice drifted over to him coming from somewhere to his right. He quickly lay his head back down as blood went rushing to his head. He dizzily lay down, and stayed still a moment. "What's the matter, not feeling too well?" The voice asked sarcastically. Stiles couldn't seem to find his voice, but forced himself to sit up. He tried to focus his eyes on something solid when he felt a painful pull in his stomach. He leaned over and vomitted. "Aw, looks like the pup can't handle his medicine." The voice came closer and two hands pulled his face up. He blinked, a blurry female face came into focus.

"How much tranquilizer was in that dart?" Another voice asked, this one male.

"Enough to bring down a werewolf." The girl said. Stiles was only half listening. Another jab in his stomach, and more vomit followed. "Though, it may have been a teensy bit more than necessary."

"Dammit, Angela, if this one dies how do you propose we get information?" The male voice came closer, and Stiles felt more hands on his face. A blinding light appeared, and he blinked away from it. "Well, he seems to be alright for the time being. Pupils are a bit dilated, but nothing life-threatening." The flashlight left his line of vision, and he tried to force himself to focus. The last thing he remembered was jogging through the woods. He had fallen, and sprained his ankle. He twisted it gingerly, and felt a stab of pain. Definitely sprained.

"See, Charles, he'll be fine." Angela said. "Well, he won't be fine for long, but he'll be fine enough for questioning. Once we get what we need, he'll be easy to dispose of." There was an evil giggle and she was quiet. Something about this woman scared Stiles. Her merciless laugh, her careless way of saying he'd be 'disposed of'. It all reminded him of a certain other sadistic wolf-hunter. One that had gotten her throat ripped open. Because he was certain that's what these two were. Hunters. And, Stiles realized grimly, they thought they'd caught a wolf. He didn't want to think what they'd do to him if they found out he wasn't a werewolf. Probably kill him then and there. They obviously didn't have a problem killing, he thought.

By this time, he was starting to get feeling back in his limbs, all of which were very sore. He must have gotten a cramp in his leg at some point, because it was throbbing painfully. He tried to work his hands out of the chains, but it was useless.

"Don't bother, mutt." Angela said teasingly. "You're not getting out, and once you're able to talk, there will be no point in escape." She giggled again, this time watching the look of fear on Stiles' face. He took a deep breath, and closed his eyes. He had only one hope now, and though it seemed almost impossible, he'd learned to believe in the impossible. Concentrating as hard as his still-drugged brain would let him, he thought of the only hope he had. _Derek, _Stiles thought, _if you can sense me, now would be the time to show it. _He could see Derek's face clearly in his mind, and it filled him with love and hope. Derek had never let him down before. He prayed this time wouldn't be any different.

"Alright, enough waiting around." Charles said, walking over to Stiles. "Lets see what you know." He lifted Stiles, whose legs still felt numb, and roughly pulled him to a chair in the middle of the otherwise empty room. It was a small room, dingy and musty. Stiles had no idea where they were, whether or not they were even near the city. Charles adjusted the chains so that Stiles was now unable to move from the chair. Charles then headed for the door.

"I forgot to bring in my equipment, I'll be right back." Stiles was left with Angela, who watched him ravenously. Stiles tried to look away, but her deadly hazel eyes kept pulling him back. She smiled after a moment, her features twisting into a menacing sight.

"We're gonna have fun, you and I." She said sweetly, dangerously. "You're the first one we've caught from Lupus in a very long time. I'll give one thing to Lorenzo, he knows how to keep us out. But now that we've got one of his dear mutts, it'll only be a matter of time before he comes looking. And all those little pups he keeps nice and safe...let's just say once he's out of the way, picking them off will be all too easy." Stiles couldn't believe it. He was just a pawn, bait to get to Lorenzo. _But I don't belong to Lorenzo. _Stiles thought. _I belong to Derek. And he'll come to find me. And Scott won't be far behind. _The thought of Derek and Scott being captured by these two terrified Stiles. _I never should have come here!_ He thought angrily. _Derek always thought he was putting me in danger because of what he is. But I'm putting him in danger by being human! _The thought of putting Derek in danger made him sick. If anything happened to him...Stiles wouldn't be able to live with himself. He wouldn't want to. The door opened and Charles walked back in. Stiles steeled himself. Whatever they did to him, he would not give them information. He would hold out as long a he could. Resolved to his decision, he watched Charles walk toward him.

...

Derek and Scott reached the Range in less than fifteen minutes. They'd been running at full speed, and Scott was completely winded, but Derek didn't slow. They ran to the far side of the camp as Lorenzo appeared from the trees.

"What has happened?" He asked calmly.

"Hunters!" Derek barked. "Hunters have taken Stiles!" A look of concern passed over Lorenzos face, and he turned toward the jeep he kept parked near his hut.

"Follow." They didn't need to be told twice. They hopped in the jeep, and Lorenzo started the engine. "Evanna, Demetri, you're in charge!" He called. Even though Scott didn't know where the two wolves were, he knew they'd heard. They sped off through the trees following an almost impossible path. They were heading toward the small brick building where they'd first met Lorenzo. Pulling up, Derek jumped out before the jeep was even stopped. Scott had never seen him this upset, and felt it himself. He followed Derek and Lorenzo into the building. They flew up the stairs, and Derek barged into the second door down the narrow hallway. It was buzzing with surveillance equipment. Scott looked at the screens which showed every inch of Lupus Range. Derek immediately sat down at one of the computers and his fingers crawled over the keyboard. Scott bent down next to him, and watched as Derek brought up the history of the last four hours from cameras labled A, E, and G. Lorenzo, meanwhile, was looking through some other equipment on the other desk. Derek hissed as he saw footage of Stiles jogging through the woods. He enhanced the images, and switched cameras so they matched. They watched Stiles from two different angles jogging through the woods. Derek snarled as he saw Stiles trip and fall down into a ravine. He was lost on camera for a few minutes, but Derek was able to bring up an image of him as he attempted to get himself out. He limped badly for a second before stopping and looking down at his arm. Derek stared intently at the screen, enhancing the image as far as it would go. He growled savagely as he noticed the dart sticking out of Stiles' arm. Suddenly Stiles fell over and was hauled up by a man. A woman came into the shot, and they exchanged a few words before dragging an unconscious Stiles further away. They soon lost all footage, as the man and woman were now out of range of the cameras. Scott watched Derek tensely as he bared his fangs and growled.

"Lorenzo." He muttered.

"I know who they are." Lorenzo said, now printing out some papers. "I've dealt with them before. They killed one of my students eight years ago. They had attempted to get information from her about Lupus, but she wouldn't give. Since then I've kept on the lookout for them, but they've kept a low profile. Lately however, I've seen evidence that their active again. I never thought they would dare come this close to camp. Not after last time. I was able to take out three of their members, but those two are crafty and hard to track. If I had any idea that they would even attempt to come near Lupus, I would have warned you straight away."

"Names." Derek barked. He was still in half-wolf form, and his agitation and impatience were apparent.

"Charles is the male, and the female is Angela." Lorenzo said, handing Derek the papers. Derek scanned them. "You want to be careful, Derek. They're dangerous. Probably some of the most dangerous I've seen. And they're completely unfeeling. They will kill you in a heartbeat if you let them."

"Stiles isn't like us, though." Derek said. "He's completely innocent."

"They won't see it that way." Lorenzo shook his head. "If they find out they've abducted a human, all they'll see is a traitor to their kind. You'd better hurry. He might not have much time." Derek nodded.

"Thank you." He said before turning and racing back down the stairs, Scott on his heels.

...

"If you promise not to make this difficult, we'll promise to make it quick and painless." Angela purred in Stiles' ear. He tried to move his head away, but found it difficult. The chains were beginning to chafe his wrists, and he could feel the raw skin begin to irritate.

"I've never been all that good with promises." He replied as neutrally as he could. He didn't want them to know how scared he really was.

"Is that so?" Angela said. "We'll just see if we can change that." And she took the leather bag Charles was holding and opened it. Charles leaned against the wall, watching. He wore an almost bored expression.

"Lets not drag this out, Angela." He said.

"But thats the best part." She pouted. He raised an eyebrow, and she rolled her eyes. "Fine. Lets start with an easy one. Where exactly is Lupus Range located?"

"What, it's not on your map? I'd call that a manufacturing mistake." Stiles replied. "Have you tried Google maps?" Angela just smiled.

"You've got a bit of lip, huh?" She chuckled. "Well well, we'll just have to remedy that." Without warning she backhanded him across the face. His vision swam for a second, but he looked back up at her. He could feel his lip bleeding.

"If that's how you react to some friendly advice, I'd say you've got some deep rooted issues. Maybe talk to a professional." Stiles said, which resulted in another backhand. She punched him when he lifted his head back up, and he felt blood running down his nose.. His face was really starting to hurt. Angela laughed and reached into the bag, and Stiles couldn't help his eyes widening as she pulled out a long silver knife.

"Yeah." She said, catching his expression. "Told you we're gonna have some fun. Now, let's try this again. Where exactly is Lupus located?"

"Gee, I was just about to tell you, but that last punch really made me a bit dizzy." Stiles managed to say. His mouth was dry, but he refused to let this woman get the better of him. "I think I might have some memory loss." Angela just chuckled.

"Such a shame to mess up such a pretty face." She purred. Stiles stiffened as she brought the knife to his cheek. He tried not to cry out as he felt the blade cut into his skin, but a strangled grunt escaped his mouth. He felt blood run down his cheek and onto his shoulder. He gripped the chains around his wrists, trying to ignore the pain. There was a knock on the door. Angela sighed and stood up.

"Tell me that's not who I think it is." She said. "Just when we were getting to the good part." Charles opened the door, and Stiles saw another man enter. This one was older and had an eyepatch. _And I thought the torture scene couldn't get anymore cliche, _he thought sarcastically. He winced as he moved his mouth around trying to feel how deep he'd been cut. More blood dripped down his face.

"There's a problem." The new man said. "We've been hailed."

"To where?" Angela walked over to him. "We just caught one, or did Julius not get our message?" She sounded indignant, whipping her head angrily. "No, no this isn't happening. Not again." Charles placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Angela, you know that we-"

"No, Charles!" She smacked his hand away furiously. "It's taken us eight years to track one down. Eight years, Charles! And I'm not leaving here until we have something that we can actually use!" She rounded back on Stiles, blade still in hand. He braced himself, but she just stared at him, eyes barely more than slits.

"What is it?" Charles asked. Angela didn't answer, but looked back down at her dagger, and then crossed over to Stiles. She grabbed his head harshly, twisting it so she was staring at the fresh cut across his cheek. She cursed, the word spitting from her mouth like venom.

"What's the problem?" The new guy asked, watching Angela warily.

"This blade is pure silver." She said, gazing at Stiles, who just as adamantly stared back. Charles walked over and looked at Stile's face.

"Dammit!" He yelled. "How the hell did this happen, Angela?"

"I don't know!" She shouted back, "I watched them all! I watched for weeks! Don't you dare blame this on me!"

"Julius is going to have our asses, Angela. And probably a lot more than that." Charles hissed, striding over to stand in the opposite corner. "We'll be lucky to get out of this mess alive."

"One of you two idiots care to tell me just what the hell is going on?" Eyepatch asked, still standing in the door.

"I just sliced this little bastards cheek open." She said pointing at Stiles.

"And?" Eyepatch said, clearly as lost as Stiles.

"The blade is silver, Einstein!" She said, as if that cleared anything up. "The skin around the cut should be boiled, the blood turning dark." She motioned a hand at Stiles' face. His heart dropped. He'd known the effect silver had on wolves. He would've smacked himself if his hands weren't so tightly bound behind him. "Instead," Angela continued, turning her piercing and furious eyes back to Stiles, "it's just a regular cut. Which means he's not a werewolf."

"What?" Eyepatch exclaimed. "What are you saying, what the hell are you saying?"

"This is just some teenager." Charles said in a low voice.

"Uh-uh, no godamm way!" Eyepatch said. "I'm not involving myself in this anymore. I stuck my neck out for you two too many damn times. If Julius finds out he has to clean up a kidnapping, you'll be lucky if he doesn't kill you! I'm out, and I mean it this time! I delivered the message, and now I'm out. Don't call me." And with that, he was out the door and gone. Stiles had no choice but to watch as Angela and Charles turned on him.

"What the HELL were you doing at Lupus Range?" Angela shouted. "And don't even pretend you don't know about the wolves. Why the hell was a normal human there, Lorenzo has NEVER let a human enter his-" She stopped, her eyes going wide. "No..." She breathed.

"What now?" Charles asked.

"I thought I recognized him. I watched their cab pull away from the hotel they were staying at. There were two teenagers, both of who I presumed were new recruits. But the third...I can't believe I didn't recognize him right away." She walked over to the black duffel bag sitting by the door, dug through it for a few seconds, and produced a folded sheet of paper. Charles looked at it, and hissed.

"Well well well." He said. "Welcome back Derek Hale..."

...

**So there's that. Hope you liked. Reviews/Comments appreciated. Also, stay tuned and whatnot...**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N- Yes, I know, I'm evil for taking this long to update. I swear I didn't do it on purpose though. If that makes you feel better. No? Oh, well... However, in honor of the Teen Wolf season 2 premiere tonight, I wanted to get this out, so I sat down and forced myself to finish it. It's going to be so weird when Teen Wolf starts again and Stiles and Derek **_**aren't **_**a couple...**

**Anyway, thanks to EVERYONE who commented, reviewed, and alerted this story. It really brightens my day. You're all awesome!**

**...**

_The waves crashed in salty sprays around Derek's feet. He stood only inches away from the cliff, breathing hard as he stared down into the black sea. Darkness had set hours ago, and he'd been running ever since. Sweat trickled down his face, into his eyes, and he swiped a hand across his brow. He looked with irritation at his human hands, he'd long since been forced from his wolf-form out of sheer exhaustion. He and Laura had been running for what seemed like days, but in truth had only been about twelve hours. If it had been just him, he would have stayed and fought. He had complete faith in his abilities, but wouldn't dare risking Laura's life. So, they were left with no choice. They ran. And ran. And ran._

_ He could still smell the smoke, hear the screaming of the people inside the house, smell the charred flesh as he watched helplessly as they were eaten alive by the flames. His father, his mother, his little sister...all dead now. It was the only time his strength had failed him. He'd pulled on the bars of the window, but they hadn't budged. Laura had tried to get inside, but the flames were so hot and so determined to destroy everything inside, she couldn't get close. As she screamed for their family, and they screamed back, Derek did what he could to keep her alive as well. He couldn't let her attempt to get inside. He couldn't lose her as well. He knew long before she did that they were fighting a losing battle. As the screaming from inside died away, the screaming outside continued. The screaming in his own head continued._

_ It wasn't long before they arrived. The ones responsible. His father had warned them about Hunters, but he'd never met one until now. At least, he thought he hadn't. When Kate's face appeared through the smoke that continued to billow out of the windows, he wasn't sure what she was doing there at first. Then, when the rest came into view, with their guns and bullets and weapons, he knew. She'd betrayed him, betrayed all of them. He had trusted her, and she'd murdered his family. There was no remorse in her eyes as they looked at one another. He had told her he loved her, had thought he really meant it. But it was just another lie._

_ He crouched, ready to tear her face off, his transformation already complete. The arrow came out of nowhere, slicing deeply into his left arm. He howled, and Laura ran over and pulled it out. She growled, staring at the oncomers with just as much hatred as Derek felt. There were several of them. Six in all. Too many for two teenagers who were already exhausted to handle. Derek knew this. Even in this severe situation he never forgot his training. Laura had always been weaker, but now that their father was dead, she was Alpha. Derek could feel it, almost like a whisper in his veins, an instinct taking place. Laura was in charge now, and what she said he would follow. So, as much as he wanted to stay and kill and taste blood, she turned and ran. And he followed._

_ They'd run all through the night, never stopping. They knew they were being pursued, could smell the Hunters, taste them in the air. _

_ "Derek, let's go!" Laura called to him. He looked at her, wanting nothing more than to go back and fight. She sensed his anger, his hesitance to continue. "We can't go back. There's too many. And there's bound to be more once they know they can't catch us. We'll have to lay low for a while. Find a place that's safe." _

_ They weren't sure where they would go, but Derek knew Laura would take care of him. And he'd take care of her. They were all eachother had left now. He'd protect her from everything and anything that meant her harm. And she'd do the same for him..._

_ He saw her, as if from a distance, laying in the grave he'd dug. Why? He thought angrily, why did we come back? Beacon Hills, where they'd lost everything...he'd lost everything...there was nothing left for him now. Nothing, nothing, nothing...A great abyss opened up in the ground in front of him, a chasm that pulled everything into it, and Derek, no matter how hard or how fast he ran, was no exception. He felt the earth beneath his feet give way, he was falling into the nothingness...there was no air, no light, no life. Everything was dead and he was alone. Falling down down down, alone alone alone..._

_..._

Derek jolted awake, sweat making his shirt cling to him. His breathing was labored, he couldn't take a steady breath. He could hear his heartbeat in his ears, along with a dull ringing. He tried to swallow, to calm himself down. The dream. The damn dream. He hadn't had it in almost six months, but here it was again, back with a vengeance. It always took on some slightly different form, but this one had been the most realistic one in a while. He could almost still smell the ocean breeze as he remembered standing along the cliff. He sat up, putting his head between his knees, wrapping his arms around himself.

"Get a grip, Hale." He muttered. After a few trying minutes, his breathing slowed along with his heart beat. He gazed out over the treetops. He was back at Lupus Range in the hut he and Stiles had shared. It was minus one warm body, and the panic and anger came roaring back. It had been almost four days since Stiles had disappeared and Derek was no closer to finding him. Scott had thrown himself into helping Derek in any way he could, proving to be an immense asset as a beta. Scott, for all his faults, really was proving himself in Derek's eyes. But Derek had thrown himself completely into finding Stiles. It was his every waking thought. And now that he was awake, it was time to begin the search again.

He jumped lightly from the tree, pleased to see Scott already awake and ready in the passenger side of Lorenzo's jeep. Derek, having gotten permission to use it whenever he needed, started the engine and peeled away from the Range. They reached the Main road leading into the city after almost an hour drive, neither one wanting or needing to talk. Derek was going to look into a lead he'd found on Charles, one of the Hunters responsible for taking Stiles. It had taken a day and a half of searching through old records kept by Lorenzo, and getting into contact with Lorenzo's associates until they found something they could actually use. Apparently he'd been spotted not too far from the city, according to Calvin, an omega that had been keeping tabs on a few known Hunters.

They drove through the city, the narrow streets crowded with natives and visitors alike. It bustled with life, even at this early hour, and Derek had to reign in his frustration as they made slow work of snaking through the streets. It took nearly ten minutes to go even three blocks, and finally Derek huffed a low growl and got out.

"There's directions to the place we're going in the glove compartment." He called back to Scott, who got out and took the drivers seat. "I'm losing my mind, I have to move." And without a backward glance, he began jogging along the streets, dodging pedestrians as he went. Scott just sighed, and began slowly making his way back through the streets.

As Derek ran, his mind wandered, which he hated but couldn't help. Stiles was foremost on his mind, with every beat of his heart, he could feel the distance between them. The link that bound them together was weakening, and Derek was helpless to stop it. It made things more difficult, his senses were slower, but he forced himself to focus on the task at hand. He knew the directions to his destination by heart, having studied them the night before. If it had been just him, he would have set off right then and there, and driven through the night to get any and all answers he could. But his body was beginning to betray him, and he knew Scott needed food and sleep as well. They had forgone sleep for two nights, and had only had a passing bite to eat as they ran through the city like chickens with their heads cut off, collecting information. With each step he took, Derek could feel a physical pain in his chest, and knew that if he didn't find Stiles soon, it would be too late. For both of them.

It took another hour and a half to reach his destination, a small apartment building in the middle of a busy square. The streets were as filthy as ever, the smell almost making Derek gag. This was one of the worst parts of the city, poverty and waste were evident wherever you looked. The buildings were rotted and deteriorating, the lack of care obvious.

He entered the building, turning toward the narrow stairway, not bothering to attempt the ancient looking elevator. He took them four at a time and was soon at the eighth floor. He could smell who he was looking for behind the third door on his right, and knew the wolf could smell him as well. It was only out of respect that he knocked, admittedly a little impatiently.

"Come!" Was the reply. Derek walked in, the door swinging lightly on it's rusted hinges. The man stood up from the desk and walked over to greet Derek. "My name is Alberto, Lorenzo has told me about you."

"Yeah, I'm Derek." Derek said, glancing at the computer screen still glowing in the corner.

"My mate went missing about eight years ago, but I was fortunate enough to find her before the Hunters did any real damage. I understand what you're going through." Alberto said. "I won't keep you waiting while we exchange niceties. Come, and I'll show you what I've found." He led Derek to the computer where they went over what Alberto had been tracking for the past few days. It turned out that he had quite a lot to go on, and had been tracking the circle of Hunters that Charles and Angela worked for. Their leader was a man named Julius, but that was all that anyone knew. Alberto couldn't even find a photo of him anywhere. He was the only person in that circle whose identity was almost a complete mystery. Alberto gave him a few more details that would come in handy, such as the last place Angela and Charles had been. Unfortunately, they had left after only a day.

"Well," Derek said, folding the papers and putting them in his pocket. "It's a start, at least. Please call me if you find out anything else." Alberto nodded, and Derek took his leave.

He was out on the street when Scott drove up. He got out of the car just as Derek got in the passenger side. Scott huffed a frustrated breath and climbed back in.

"Well?" He said. "Anything new?" He started the car and started making his way through the crowd once again. Derek glanced at him.

"South." Was Derek's one worded answer. Scott pulled the car around to a narrow side street that was luckily not as packed as the main street. They continued to drive in silence. Derek closed his eyes, concentrating on the vague feeling he could still sense from Stiles. Scott, however, was getting impatient with his silent alpha.

"Derek, you've got to talk to me." He said finally. "This is affecting me, too." Derek opened his eyes, looking at Scott evenly.

"I know that." He said. "I know you care about him as well. Right now, we're just going to check out one of the places the Hunters were last seen. Keep driving south, I'll tell you where to go." Derek suddenly lurched forward, clutching his chest. He was half-shifted in a blink, growling deeply and angrily. Scott, sensing the spike in his emotions, knew there was only one reason for it. It had been happening more often in the past few days. Scott glanced at him, and if Derek had looked at him, he would have seen the indecision on his face. Scott had been playing with an idea ever since Stiles had been taken. But he knew that if he told Derek about it, he just may get his face ripped off. Literally. As he watched Derek, knowing that Stiles was in more danger than ever, he made his decision.

"Whatever we do," Derek continued, trying to control his emotions, "We have to do it fast. He won't last much longer. And neither will I."

...

Stiles coughed, gagging as the water that had been thrown in his face to wake him flowed down his throat and into his nose. Freezing water had been his alarm clock for the past three days, and it only meant one thing. More pain.

"Wakey, wakey, little wolf boy." Angela sneered at him. "I was just asking Charles if today would be the day you would finally break. He doesn't think so. I, however, have a few more surprises for you." Stiles grimaced, not even having the energy to spit a comeback. He just lay there, arms still bound behind him like they'd been the past four days. The chains had begun cutting into his wrists the first day, and now they were bloody and raw, and definitely infected. He moved as little as he could, but it wasn't easy when being manhandled by a psychotic bitch of a Hunter. They'd thankfully taken the chains off of his feet, but attempted escape was pointless when he was bound to the pipes. They were in some old building, Stiles only having had a glance at it in the dark when they'd brought him in the previous night. He had been confined to the one room, no windows and no way to tell if it was night or day. He tried to sit up and alleviate some of the pain in his legs and torso. His ankle, which had been sprained, was now blue and swollen. His legs, riddled with bruises and cuts, weren't much better off. He was almost positive he had a bruised rib, and that was all nothing compared to how much blood he assumed he'd lost from Angela's little tantrum the previous night when he still refused to tell her what she wanted to know. Namely, how to find Derek Hale. That information would die with him. Which he was beginning to suspect would actually be happening soon. Maybe even that day. His jaw ached, an ache that went all the way down his neck into his shoulder. She'd definitely chipped a few of his teeth, and he was pretty sure her favorite pastime was punching people across the face. He'd been concussed before, after a ball had hit him in the head while his helmet was off during lacrosse practice. He knew the feeling, and knew it had happened again. But he'd had to choice but to fall asleep once Angela's fists had joined the fun.

Now he sat, bruised, bloody, and semi-conscious, as Angela began the newest chapter of 'see how much he can stand before he snaps'. She roughly pulled him into a sitting position, re-opening the wound on his side that had barely stopped bleeding. He grunted in pain, too dehydrated to do much else.

"So, this is taking too long, honey." She said. Charles sat in the corner, whittling of all things. Stiles watched through blurred vision as he meticulously carved the stump of wood in his hand with a hunting knife. The same knife, ironically, that Angela had used to open the nasty gash in his side. "I don't know if you know this, but we have a flight to catch. And since we didn't buy enough tickets for three, you won't be going with us."

"That's a shame." Stiles mustered. His voice was raw and scratchy. "Just as we were becoming such good friends." Angela just smiled. Stiles knew he had no real control over her, except for the fact that he had the only thing she wanted. Which really gave him all the control. All he had to do was keep that information to himself. And he knew he could. There was nothing these people could do to him that would make him put Derek or Scott in danger.

"Listen, wolf bitch, Derek Hale was one of my first assignments. I was young and eager." She said, whispering seductively into his ear. "And he was young and well..." She reached up stroking his chin with her hand. "I botched it up. He escaped. And ever since then, I've been on the bottom rung of this fucking group." Her hand clutched his jaw, squeezing harshly, her nails digging into soft skin. "If I can get him, I'm golden. So, why don't you just fucking tell me where the fuck the fucking wolf is?" Stiles could feel her nails ripping into the underside of his jaw. He tried to pull away, but she held tight.

"Why should I help you get a fucking promotion?" Stiles spat. "You're insane, and unless you're completely stupid, you should have realized that if you haven't gotten what you want from me by now, you never will!" She giggled, and pushed his face away.

"I'll get it." She said. "I have quite the track record for getting what I want."

"Oh, and is that why we're here now? You got Derek Hale?" Stiles said.

"That was different." She said, turning to him, eyes sparking anger. "I overestimated my own abilities. It won't happen again. Now," Another backhand across his face. _That makes fifty_,Stiles thought. It had become a sick game, counting how many times Angela had backhanded him. Forty open-palm slaps, and almost eighty full-out punches. He would be surprised if he walked away from this without brain damage. He'd be surprised if he walked away from it at all.

"Where is Derek?" She screamed. "WHERE THE HELL IS HE?" Stiles just sat, unmoving, eyes straight forward. He wouldn't give her the satisfaction of knowing just how scared he really was.

"Angela, Julius will not take kindly to our being late for our rendezvous." Charles said calmly in the background as if his partner wasn't a few feet away torturing a helpless teenager. Stiles lifted his eyes to glare at Charles, but he just continued to whittle.

"Strange hobby." Stiles half whispered, half grunted. He could no longer even raise his voice. "Is that some sort of Hunter thing, or just a personal preference?" Charles didn't even raise his eyes. Stiles hated him all the more for his indifference. He hoped Derek would rip him to pieces when he eventually found them. Angela stood to face Charles.

"I suppose we should get going." She sighed. "If he puts us on watch again, I'm seriously going to leave. There's plenty of others that would love to have my expertise."

"You know he'd kill you before he'd let you leave." Charles said, pocketing his knife and tossing the chunk of wood aside. "Best to get it over with and deal with the consequences of our actions."

"Oh, you mean like abducting a human teenager, torturing him for four days, and leaving him to die?" Stiles said with as much venom as he could muster. "Those kind of actions?" Angela and Charles had gotten over their initial shock of finding out that Stiles was a human. After they'd discovered his connection to Derek, they'd used that information to get Julius to back down a bit. He was still furious, and Stiles had listened to the one-sided phone conversation two days ago. Julius had given them four days to get Derek Hale, and if they didn't have him by then, they were to come in. "Without the useless human", as Angela had said. Stiles knew he had maybe hours, if that, until they were going to decide to dispose of him. He'd given them no information, and was proud of himself for lasting as long as he had. They were no closer to finding Derek than they'd been on that first day. Why they wanted him, how they even knew who he was, was still a mystery to Stiles. But he wasn't going to ask.

Angela turned back to him, grabbing him under his arm to heave him into a standing position. He couldn't help it, he cried out in pain as his ribs felt like fire ripped through them. All of his injuries burned excruciatingly. He fell back over once Angela let go of him, no longer having the strength to even stand on his own. She looked at him, scowling in obvious disgust.

"I'm not carrying him, Charles." She said, and left the room. Charles sighed, and went over to Stiles, who simply stared at him. He propped Stiles over his shoulder, Stiles crying out again, his ribs screaming in protest. He would surely pass out from the pain and Charles began to walk out of the room and toward the van they had parked right outside. He tipped Stiles inside the back, letting him fall hard on his side. He unfortunately didn't pass out, but was left to whimper and moan in pain as they began driving again. He didn't know where they were going, didn't even know which way was up or down as he lay slumped against the floor and slid back and forth as the van rolled over rough streets. He just prayed that wherever Derek was, he wasn't far away.

...

Derek shuffled through the room, shoulders shaking from the tension that rolled off of him. Stiles had definitely been here, the wolves had smelled him before they even saw the place. It was a tiny room, the building was old and falling apart. Scott held his distance as Derek went around the room examining every inch. There was a moment when Scott thought Derek would lose it completely when they found small drops of blood on the floor, again obviously being Stiles'. But Derek had reigned himself in, and Scott was left with the a new respect for Derek as he witnessed yet again the amount of self-control he had. But it was time to put his plan into action so he excused himself.

"I'm gonna go see what I can find outside." He said. He left the room, knowing that Derek was too preoccupied to listen in on him. Scott dialed the familiar number, talked quickly, and hung up. He hoped Derek wouldn't rip him apart for what he just did, but he could think of nothing else, and time was running out. Derek came out a few minutes later.

"Anything?" He asked. Scott hadn't smelled or seen anything as he walked around. He just shook his head. Derek turned and headed back to the jeep.

"Where are we going?" Scott asked him, getting into the driver's seat yet again. Derek just shrugged.

"There's nowhere to go." He said. "I have no information, no way to know where they went. I'm completely lost here." He looked dejected, as if he'd already lost. He lowered his head to his hands, and Scott wasn't sure what to do. If Derek felt like it was hopeless, maybe they were already too late. But he wouldn't believe that.

"Derek, look, we just need to keep going." Scott said.

"Of course we do." Derek replied, looking at Scott. "Even if...even if we're too late, do you really think I would stop hunting them? I would spend the rest of my life hunting them down and making them pay for what they did." The last sentence was filled with such venom that Scott didn't doubt for a second that Derek would do exactly that.

"Let's just go back to the Range and see if there's anything new." Derek said. Scott nodded and started the jeep.

The drive was long and uneventful except for Derek's occasional jolts of concentration. Everytime that happened, Scott would look at him hoping to see something different, but Derek would just go back to his quiet self. They reached the range in three hours and, as expected, Lorenzo had no new information for them. It was like the Hunters had disappeared.

"They can't have!" Derek growled. "I can still feel him, sense him. They haven't left the country, I know it. We're just not looking in the right places, not finding the right clues."

"We're doing everything we can, Derek." Lorenzo said patiently. Derek nodded, knowing there was no point in arguing. He shuffled over to the tree he and Stiles shared, looked up to the top and dejectedly sank to his knees, kneeling at the bottom, head in his hands.

"There must be _something_." Scott said desperately. "I mean, this can't be the first incident like this. I mean, there's a dozen werewolves running around this place."

"No, not the first time." Lorenzo confirmed. Scott looked at him. "It is not a tale with a happy ending." He said, and turned away. Scott was left with only the sense of loss radiating from Derek.

He walked toward the center where the younger wolves were gathered near the fire. It was getting late and the sun was beginning to set. He sat next to Maya who looked at him worriedly.

"Any word?" She asked as Patrick and Gordon moved closer. Scott just shook his head. "Well, is there anything we can do?" Scott looked at her.

"I don't think so." He said. "I just wish I knew what to do. Even after I was bit, I've never felt this helpless." He glanced over at Derek who was still sitting at the base of his tree. Sighing, he grabbed a few chunks of meat.

"Scott, listen, we were thinking..." Maya started, but hesitated. Scott forced his attention back to Mia, and she glanced nervously between Gordon and Patrick. "I mean, we've been discussing it, and uh..." Derek suddenly made a groaning noise, and Scott stood up.

"Excuse me." He said, and jogged over to Derek. He knelt beside him, trying to look at his face, but Derek kept it covered by his hands. "Derek?"

"It's nothing." Derek grunted. Scott sighed, shuffling closer to him.

"I can't imagine what you're feeling right now." Scott said. "I mean, I sort of can, because I get these flashes...these sort of _feelings_... They come off of you in waves and...It's kind of hard to explain."

"I know what you mean." Derek whispered. "It used to happen to me all the time before I killed Peter. First with my father, then with Laura, the with Peter himself. It only happens when the Alpha is experiencing an emotional high, like anger or hate...or panic." Scott looked at him. Derek had lowered his hands and was staring off into the distant fire. With Laura it was different. Maybe because she was female, or maybe just because she was gentle. It was easier with her. Everything was easier." Scott had never heard Derek talk about his family before, he usually just barked orders and saved all of his patience for Stiles. Scott didn't know what to say. He wanted to comfort Derek, but didn't know how. "Once she was killed, I didn't think I'd be able to find that sort of peace again. Killing Peter was all I had left. And when that was done, all I was left with was a snarky beta who hated me almost as much as he'd hated his former alpha."

"I didn't hate you." Scott said.

"You did." Derek replied. "It's fine, I would have hated me, too. I took away your one chance at the Cure. But honestly, Scott, it wouldn't have worked."

"I know." Scott said. Derek glanced at him and Scott shrugged. "I've learned more than how to hunt here." Derek nodded.

"I'm sorry about that, by the way." Derek continued. "But you understand why it had to be me." It wasn't a question, and Scott did understand. He never wanted to be a werewolf in the first place, let alone taking the responsibilities of being an Alpha. "If we..._When _we come out of this, I'll try to be better with you. I know we don't get along, but I could try a little harder to be patient with you. You're not a bad beta, you know. And I could have had worse."

"Yeah, you could have had Jackson." Scott said. Derek didn't smile, but Scott knew he appreciated the humor. They sat in silence for a while, neither one saying anything. There wasn't much to say. Scott glanced at his watch, and knew he would have to find a way to slip away from the Range soon. He still had the jeep keys in his pocket.

"Go eat." Derek said. Scott looked at him, and nodded.

"You want anything?" He asked. Derek just shook his head, so Scott stood up and headed for the fire where everyone was gathered. He sat down, taking a few chunks of meat and glanced back towards Derek. He was gone, but Scott saw movement in the tree hut above them.

Gradually everyone began going to their own huts for the night, and Scott climbed up his own tree to settle in and wait. The sky blackened as he stared out, wondering if he'd done the right thing. He hoped, but at this point he didn't see any other choice. He looked at his watch, and decided it was time. He made his way silently to the ground and over to where Lorenzo's jeep was. He knew the engine would wake everyone, but he hoped to be out of camp by the time anyone came to investigate. He climbed in, slowly closing the door and grimacing at the audible _click _it made once it was closed.

"Going somewhere?" Scott nearly jumped out of his skin, and turned to see Derek sitting in the passenger seat, almost completely invisible in the dark.

"Jesus!" Scott whispered. "You scared the hell out of me!" He pushed the key in the ignition, determined to see his plan through.

"What the hell are you up to?" Derek demanded. Scott put the jeep into drive, and pulled away from the camp.

"I uh...I had a plan." Scott said. He might as well admit it, Derek was going to eventually find out anyway. "I called Allison earlier today." He winced as Derek inhaled sharply. He really hoped he wasn't about to get his head ripped off.

"And why would you do that?" Derek asked, with what little control he had left.

"Listen, I know you hate her, but really she's on our side." Scott said, and went on in spite of the death glare Derek was currently shooting at him. "Ok, listen, her dad will do pretty much anything to get back on her good side at this point. And no matter what you think of him, he's not after us. We've never harmed anyone, never bit anyone...I mean, you're mister perfect control. So, uh, yeah. I called her to ask her to tell her dad we need help. And she said she would get him to be on the next flight out here no matter what. So, I checked the times on my phone, and the next arrival is in an hour, so I'm trying to get there and uh..." Scott lost his train of thought at the look Derek was giving him. He sighed, and kept his eyes locked on the road.

"So..." Derek started, and Scott cringed. "So, you...you not only invited a Hunter out here, where the Range is located-"

"I was NEVER gonna tell him where it is!" Scott protested, but Derek continued.

"But you also went behind my back to invite a HUNTER OUT HERE!" Derek yelled. Scott clenched his jaw. He knew what he was about to say would hurt, but it had to be done.

"Are we any closer to finding Stiles?" He asked, and Derek visibly cringed. "We have nothing to go on, no more clues, our leads have dried up! We're completely lost here, and we're running out of time! If there's even the slightest chance that Allison's dad can help, I'm gonna take that chance, and you should be grateful that I did!" He was breathing hotly, and knew that Derek could either accept what he'd done, or kill him here and now. He was really hoping for the former. Derek continued to stare at him, and Scott kept his eyes forward. After a few minutes, Derek sighed deeply.

"Fine." He finally said. "We'll see what the Hunter can do. But if you so much as mention Lupus Range to him-"

"I swear I won't." Scott said quickly. Derek nodded stiffly, still unsure about this whole arrangement. But even now, he could feel his hold on Stiles slipping away. He sat back and waited for the ride to the airport to be over.

...

They arrived with only minutes to spare. The small airport was mostly empty, and it didn't take long for them to pick up on Mr. Argent's scent. They followed it around the terminal until they reached baggage claim, where Scott froze.

"Allison..." He breathed. She turned to see them, and broke into a radiant smile. Scott had barely taken two steps by the time she was throwing herself into his arms, crying and laughing. Mr. Argent stood a few steps back, visibly uncomfortable to be so close to werewolves.

"What're you doing here?" Scott said, once they'd slathered eachother in kisses, causing Derek to roll his eyes, and Mr. Argent to look away pointedly.

"I wasn't going to let my dad come here by himself, someone needs to keep him in line." She looked back icily at her father. "Right dad?"

"Allison, this is ridiculous." He said. "You should not be here, it's too-"

"If you say dangerous, I'll have to remind you, yet again, how many times Scott has already saved my life."

"And I'll remind _you_ that it was he who put you in danger in the first place." Allison just sighed and turned back to Scott. Her face changed from radiant to sad in about .2 seconds. Derek clenched his jaw.

"I'm sorry to hear about Stiles." She said.

"Yes, let's get to business." Mr. Argent said. "I already have a few leads, I've been working none-stop since Allison's call." Derek perked up a bit at this.

"What do you have?" He asked, all business. Mr. Argent looked at him, and motioned toward the exit. They all piled into the jeep and began driving.

"So, I know the people that took Stiles, I've been in contact with several people since yesterday." Mr. Argent said.

"We know who they are, too. Angela and Charles." Derek said. "The only thing we don't know is how the hell to find them."

"Well, you're lucky Scott called me, because they're scheduled to leave the country in about four hours."

"What?" Derek jerked his head around to look at Argent.

"Don't worry, I'll be able to find them long before that. I have a few contacts in their organization. I've found out that Angela and Charles have gotten themselves on their leaders bad side. And I don't just mean they're going to be demoted, I mean...well you'd have to know about Julius in order to truly appreciate what is happening."

"We know about Julius." Derek said. Scott glanced at him, but Derek just looked forward again. He knew the name, no need to let the Hunters know just how little they knew.

"Anywho, the place where they're being held is about an hour and a half drive from here." Argent said.

"You know where they are?" Derek said. "Why the hell didn't you just call Scott and tell him? We could have been there by now!"

"Because, first off, I just found out myself," He said, waving his phone at Derek with a new message in the inbox, "And second, you may need backup. If there's anything I hate worse than a vicious werewolf, it's a Hunter who lives for nothing but blood. There's a reason we live by the code. Some werewolves are vicious killers, yes, but many are peaceful and completely in control of their abilities." Derek just clenched his jaw, unwilling to comment. No matter what Argent's ideals were, he still viewed all Hunters as unnecessary foes.

They continued to drive in silence, all stress and tension visible between Hunter and wolf. They were on an abandoned road, no one in sight, when Derek sensed their presence behind them.

"What the-" He looked back, and saw the car speeding toward them. "Scott, pull over."

"What?" He asked.

"Just do it, we have company." He said. Scott pulled the jeep to the side of the road, but kept the engine running. Derek slid out, and walked toward the back as another car drove up behind them. When it stopped, Derek just growled his annoyance.

"What do you think you're doing?" He asked. Maya, Gordon, and Patrick all got out of the car and came toward them. Scott had gotten out at this point, facing them confusedly.

"We've been following you since you left the Range." Maya stated.

"I know, I was kind of hoping we'd lose you." Derek stated bluntly. Maya didn't back down, instead jutted her chin up determined to speak her piece.

"We want to join your pack." She said. Scott opened his mouth, but nothing came out.

"And why should I let you do that?" Derek asked, eyeing them all darkly.

"It's simple." Patrick said, wiping his curls out of his face. "We have no alphas, we hate being omegas, and we want a pack."

"Build your own." Derek huffed turning back to the jeep.

"We would-" Maya walked after him. "But, we need someone strong, someone who knows what they're doing. And you're the best alpha that's come along in a while." Derek was already at the door pulling it open.

"Please Derek!" Gordon jogged after them with Patrick close behind. "We have no options when we leave the Range, which eventually we will. I mean, we can't stay there forever. We're not Evanna and Demetri. And when we do leave...I mean, we don't want to be killed by Hunters." Derek could hear the slight fear in his voice, even though he tried hard to hide it.

"We could help." Maya said hopefully when Derek didn't dismiss them right away. "I mean, we'd stay out of your way, out of your life unless you needed us."

"Large packs draw unnecessary attention." Derek said. But he was looking at them closely, determining whether what they said appealed to him. Gordon saw the change in expression, and pushed their point.

"Well, we'd be discreet. We've already learned how to control ourselves during the full moon. We can fight well, so we can defend ourselves from other interested alphas. And, Lorenzo said, the bigger the pack, the less threat from other packs." Derek watched them, his jaw tensing. He sighed heavily.

"Maya's female." He said, as if that was another arguing point. They all just looked at him clearly confused. He sighed again and rolled his eyes. "I take it you haven't went into heat yet." He said bluntly. Maya's cheeks went red.

"Uh, no." She said. "But what's that got to do with-"

"Females always cause drama in the pack dynamics. Unless she's claimed, the males will fight amongst themselves to claim her when her heat comes. It's instinct, one that is difficult to control. Scott and myself will have no problem since we're already mated, but I can't say the same for these two." He waved to Patrick and Gordon. Maya glanced at them as well.

"So, you do think Allison's my mate." Scott said. They all looked at him.

"Not the point right now, Scott." Derek said. He turned back to the three young wolves standing hopefully in front of him.

"I'll take my chances." Maya said, undeterred. "If either of them try anything without permission, I'll break their jaw." Derek smiled slightly. He liked her courage. And of all the students he'd worked with at the range, these were the three strongest and most advanced. He rubbed his hand over his jaw, thinking.

"Well, I think it'd be great." Scott said. "Finally having someone else to talk to about all this crazy shit." Maya grinned at him. Derek still looked unconvinced.

"We're wasting time here." He said.

"Derek, wait!" Scott said. "Just...just think about it, alright? I mean, it's not like they're total strangers, we know them. We can trust them. At least, I think we can." Maya rolled her eyes at him. Allison chose that moment to climb out of the car, and Chris just sat there, eyeing them all.

"Couldn't help but overhear." She said. "And if my opinion means anything-"

"Which it doesn't." Derek put in.

"I think it's a great idea." Allison continued. They all looked at her, Scott was speechless.

"R-really?" He stuttered. She looked at him lovingly.

"Of course I want you to have friends that you can...you know...talk to about certain things." She said. "And they seem nice to me."

"Hold on." Chris said, getting out of the car. "This is a bad idea. We've already got two wolves running around Beacon Hills, now you're saying there will be more?" And the idea of claiming the three young wolves for his own pack simply to piss Argent off made Derek smile even wider.

"Alright, lets do it then." He said.

"What?" Six heads turned to him. One shocked and outraged, five shocked and excited.

"You heard them, they're in complete control of themselves." Derek said to Chris. "Tell him that you've never attacked or bitten a human." He turned to the three wolves.

"Never." They all said in unison.

"But that doesn't mean-"

"What it _does _mean is that I've just expanded my pack." Derek stated. "Well, almost..." He turned to the wolves.

"Are you absolutely certain this is what you want?" He asked. They nodded enthusiastically. Derek shrugged. "Alright. Maya, you first." She stepped forward nervously as Derek placed his hands behind her neck. "This will hurt, but you'll heal up in a few minutes." She nodded, bracing herself. She winced but didn't cry out as Derek's claws sunk deeply into her flesh, each claw hitting a vertebrae in her neck, and then digging in even further. He pulled them out, and she sunk to the ground grasping at her neck. It bled profusely but she just wiped away what she could and ignored the rest.

"Who's next?" Derek asked. Gordon stepped up and Derek repeated the process on him and Patrick who didn't even flinch. Derek felt he might have found his favorite one as Patrick stared resolutely back as Derek dug into his neck. When he pulled out, Patrick sighed.

"How do you feel?" Scott asked once they were able to talk.

"Uh...okay, I think." Maya said.

"It will take some time before their allegiances turn to me." Derek said. "But we've already wasted enough time here. Let's move!" He got back into the jeep, Scott, Allison, and Chris behind him. Patrick, Maya, and Gordon got back into their own car and followed closely. They headed deeper into the forested area, and it became less and less populated. Soon they were the only ones on the road. Derek began to get anxious, but kept his focus on the road ahead.

"He's close." Was all he said. Scott just gripped the steering wheel tighter. After a few minutes, Chris told them to turn onto the road to their left. It wasn't easily seen from the main road, but Scott found it alright. They approached a small cabin, little more than a hut, and Derek hurled himself out the door before Scott even slowed down.

...

Stiles' whole body ached. After he'd passed out in the van, he'd awoken to yet again be chained in another tiny room. The windows, as always, were blocked out, so he had no idea what time of day it was. It was hard to breathe with the bruised rib, and his eye was swollen shut. He could barely see with his other eye but it was enough that he knew he knew Angela and Charles sat in the corner in front of a computer. He didn't say anything, preffering to let them think he was still unconscious. He didn't know why he was still alive, although he was thankful for it even if he felt like he should be dead. He watched silently as Charles typed swiftly on the computer, and Angela watched.

"If we're going to use him as a trade-off, they'll want him alive." Charles was saying.

"Are you listening to yourself? What would they possibly want with him?" Angela hissed back.

"He has ties to the wolves, we know that much." Charles responded patiently, as if he were explaining something very simple to a child. "And when Julius hears about what we did-"

"I thought we'd been over this, Charles. He won't hear because we won't tell him." She said threateningly.

"Of course he's going to find out, Angela, he finds out everything. There will be no keeping this from him. Even if he does know how close we got, it won't matter once he finds out he'll have to cover up an abduction."

"Yes, but if we hand the little twerp over, he can use him however he wants." Angela continued. They were silent for a few more minutes as Charles continued to click away at the keyboard. From what Stiles could gather through his still foggy mind, Charles and Angela were planning on handing him over to this Julius guy. If he was anything like these two Hunters, Stiles hoped he'd be dead before he met him.

"No, make sure it's _all _deleted, Charles. We can't have any trace of it." Angela said. "This was the last safe-house we've been to and we can't have anyone knowing about it. All the files, Charles." There was a bit more clicking, and then they both stood up. Stiles shut his eye, trying to even his breathing.

"It's no uses, I know you're awake." Angela said. She walked over and nudged him with her boot. Right in his ribs. He hissed in pain, trying to take a breath. "It may interest you to know that we've decided not to kill you just yet."

"So I've noticed." Stiles breathed. "I sure hope Julius is a little more hospitable."

"So, you've been listening. Good." Angela said. "I really hate repeating myself. So, here's what we'll do. You, my delightful little friend, are going to-

"Angela!" Charles called. "Someone's coming!" Stiles could hear it, too. A vehicle was crunching down the road coming closer to the cabin. A sharp sense of hope shot through Stiles. He knew who it was, and smiled in relief. Charles grabbed the duffel bag by the door that Stiles knew was filled with weapons.

"Who the hell is it?" Angela said, looking up at Charles.

"The cavalry." Stiles muttered.

...

Derek flew out of the jeep, landing perfectly and sprinting toward the cabin. Scott and the rest of the group weren't far behind. The door opened, and Derek dodged behind a tree as the two Hunters emerged, firing serious looking rifles. Scott and the other wolves ducked behind trees as well, their training and speed coming in handy. Chris and Allison ducked behind the jeep doors, and Allison dove back in, grabbing her bow and explosive-tipped arrows. Chris grabbed his own gun.

"Come out come out little wolves!" Angela called. "I've got some nice silver here for you!" She shot again and Maya peeked out from behind her tree. It barely missed, grazing the trunk as it flew by. Scott caught Derek's eye and in that simple glance, their plan was made. It still amazed Scott how in-tune they'd become. Scott turned and began climbing the tree just as Allison loosed an arrow. Angela dodged it, but it made an impressive hole in the door where Charles was just emerging with his own rifle. He was knocked back a few feet and didn't rise. Angela had to duck and roll in order to avoid the arrow, and Derek took his chance and threw himself at her. She rolled away just in time, getting into the cabin and kicking the door closed behind her.

"Come on in and claim your corpse!" She screeched. Derek stopped dead. Through the hole in the door Derek could see Stiles, Angela's hands around his throat. He stopped moving. Stiles looked at Derek with his one good eye mouthed 'Hi' to him. Derek couldn't stop the tear that rolled down his face at the look on Stiles' face. Finally seeing him after all these days, he was reminded how little his life would mean without him.

Scott, meanwhile, had made his way to the roof of the cabin and was inching his way to the small window.

"I don't think there's a way out of this, wolf bitch." Angela was whispering to Stiles. Her hand tightened around his throat. "So, before we go, just answer me something. Tell me, how does it feel to know you're about to die?"

"You tell me." Stiles whispered just as Scott kicked through the window. Derek flew in, dodged the bullet that was sent his way and grabbed Angela by the throat. Scott was in the cabin, and kicked away Angela's gun. Derek didn't talk, didn't want answers or to make threats. He barely looked into Angela's eyes. Just squeezed. She was dead in less than a minute. He fell next to Stiles, ripping the chains away from where they were attached to the wall. He scrabbled in Angela's pocket and found the key to the locks and made quick work of getting Stiles out of the chains that had bound him for the last few days. The skin was raw and bleeding. Derek gently lifted Stiles, cradling him to his chest.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, so so sorry..." He whispered over and over. Stiles had no strength left. He wanted to hug Derek back, to tell him to shut up and it wasn't his fault and he loved him, loved him, loved him. But Stiles' body was spent, and all he could do was lightly grasp Derek's wrist before he passed out.

...

Two and a half weeks later, Stiles was finally going home. He'd spent two week in a hospital being talked to by doctors and nurses who he couldn't understand, although Derek seemed to have a good grasp on the language so he could translate everything. Stiles had healed up nicely, no lasting damage except for a couple of light scars around his wrists. Considering everything, he thought he'd gotten off lucky. He still had wrapping around his ribs, but they were also feeling alright. His dad had been livid when he'd found out that Scott and Stiles had won a trip to South America after playing a game in New York and had taken it without even telling their parents. At least, that was their cover story. Stiles needed enough time to heal, and Scott couldn't show up without Stiles. Derek had payed all the hospital bills before Stiles had even woken up, so there were no worries there. Although Stiles did feel a bit guilty when he heard the amount from Scott.

When he'd heard they'd added three more to their family, he was as excited as Scott had been. Derek, after spending some time with the three young wolves, had decided they weren't completely intolerable. And Stiles was glad to hear they got along, because they'd be having to live with a certain Alpha until they could find other living arrangements. Lorenzo was glad to see they'd found a suitable life and had even had some documents made putting them all in Derek's charge. Maya could pass as his niece, and Gordon and Patrick would be his distant cousins. The details would iron themselves out later, but for now they all just wanted to get home.

The flight was long but nice as Derek was able to get them seats next to eachother. They'd barely spent any time apart since Derek had found him, and their bond had grown all the stronger. Stiles sat on the plane, nuzzled against Derek's side, Derek flung an arm around him and held him close.

"You know, I recall the flight here passing with some form of bathroom entertainment." Stiles mumbled against Derek's shoulder. Derek looked at him, his eyes narrowing.

"Absolutely not." He growled, but there was a smile behind that growl. Stiles laughed.

"I'm joking." He said. "I don't think I'll be doing any of that for a while. Unfortunately."

"Stiles, you have to let your body heal." Derek said.

"Yeah yeah." Stiles said. "Doesn't mean I have to like it." He closed his eyes and Derek just pulled him closer. He'd been having trouble sleeping unless he knew Derek was close. But it was getting better. He allowed his mind to drift off as the plane ascended, looking forward to finally being home. And as much as his dad was going to yell and rant and ground and punish him when he finally got there, he knew he'd accept it gladly. After all, he have his whole pack for support. Including three new members who were at this moment talking and laughing in the row behind them. Stiles smiled into Derek's shoulder, and Derek kissed him on the top of his head. For now, Stiles was content. Or, as content as he could be knowing that this certainly wouldn't be the last time he'd be in danger. _Until the next life threatening adventure_, he thought wryly. He sighed happily and let himself fall asleep.

...

**There. Done. FINALLY. It's over... **

**So, I was thinking about writing a few one-shots for my OC's Maya, Patrick, and Gordon as they adjust to life in Beacon Hills. No promises though. Let me know what you think. Also, review and comment and all that good stuff that makes author's do the happy dance. **


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